Chapter 29

Zeke chuckled as he called the Condesa.

Sofia appeared on the vid and smiled at him.

“Sofia, hate to ask, but can you get Raul to dock to the second hold on the other side of Baraz’s ship? Once you’re in place, Freya will try and extend our shields to cover it for the MPs.”

Sofia grinned, “We are just below you. Give us half an hour to get in position. Freya has already mentioned that you have Hold Two airtight and that we will be getting more guests.”

“No, rush. I’ll do some work while I wait. Once we are hooked up, we can get some sleep. I think it’s going to be a busy day tomorrow.”

“Never a dull moment with you around, Zeke,” she sniggered and signed off.

Zeke awoke after four and a half hours.

He was feeling refreshed and energised. Having the crystals spread around the ship seemed to boost his energy levels and his recovery after using magic. He was glad he had used them now.

After ablutions, he went to check on Lou. He still thought of him as Shorty. Lou was awake but still snuggled up in bed. He looked a lot better than when he had arrived on the ship.

“Yo! You up for some Breaky, Lou?”

“Please, I’m starving. Baraz stocks a lean and mean larder. We left Morpheus before I could get some fresh food on board.”

Zeke chuckled, “Will bacon and poached eggs on toast with fried tomato, mushrooms and onions do?”

Lou’s eyelids drooped, and the smile of pleasure, was as if he had been offered his heart’s content. “Who do you want me to kill for that?”

Zeke gave him a wry grin, “No killing needed today. It’s just breakfast. I have to check on your mate, and then I’ll get it started. You want tea, coffee, or hot Milo with that?”

“Black tea would be great. Do you mind if I have another shower? Our water filtration system was playing up. We barely had enough to drink. Baraz was shit at fixing stuff. Our mechanic got arrested on Morpheus a week ago. The idiot was drinking and gambling with the wrong people.”

“Some people just have to learn things the hard way. Be back soon.”

Zeke locked the door before heading downstairs to check on Baraz. While he looked a lot healthier, he was still out to it.

“How’s he going, Freya?”

“Improving. I suggest you connect up a bag of nutrients, and we leave him in his induced coma for at least another twelve hours. By then, a proper doctor should look at him.”

“Fine by me. One less to feed and worry about,” Zeke responded.

Zeke swapped bags over. He checked with the Auto-Doc that Baraz’s vitals were good and did the distasteful task of swapping the nappy. He had no intention of trying to put in a catheter, so a nappy it was. He was glad that Baraz had only peed in it.

His doctoring done; breakfast was next. Zeke cooked enough food to satisfy two, big, hungry men. He enjoyed having a decent breakfast to start his day. He even liked his own cooking, even though it didn’t compare with Sofia’s.

Lou was on the skinny side, but Zeke knew men like him often had a high metabolism and could eat as much as a man twice his size. Lou didn’t disappoint him. He even drank the litre-sized pot of tea and the large glass of fruit juice Zeke had left for him.

Lou was asleep again by the time Zeke came to collect the dishes.

Zeke was pulling a pallet from the R&R unit in his workshop when Freya called him.

She told him they were being hailed. He told her he would be up shortly and continued finishing his current task. He knew Raul and Sofia were busy doing the same thing on their ship.

He had moved enough raw material back onto Raul’s ship for them while they slept the night before. They were happy to help with the processing since he had to go rescue the pirates. Zeke wanted their hold filled with product as soon as they could do it.

Zeke finally got to the helm with fresh coffee in hand and took his seat. “You can inform whoever it is that I’m here, please, Fremantle.”

When she appeared, a very cranky woman wearing an UNSEC Captain’s uniform barked at him from the vid screen, “You took your damn time, Captain.”

She was short and plump enough to stretch the seams of the jumpsuit that was open to below her large breasts and the material of the white t-shirt under it. Zeke suspected a Southern Indian heritage by her skin tone and features. He thought it odd that her long, curly hair wasn’t restrained.

“Madam, I work for a living. I am not at your beck and call. What do you want?”

“You are to undock from the ship you have unlawfully claimed and to return it and its crew to me. If you do not comply immediately, you will be boarded and arrested.”

“So why haven’t you docked with me already?”

“We have to inform a ship’s Captain before doing so,” she replied crisply.

“I call bullshit. You have tried to dock with my port side personnel airlock for the last half an hour. You did not hail my ship until you realised it was futile. I am not an idiot, and I am well-versed in my rights. My ship has excellent proximity sensors, scanners, and external cameras.”

“The pirates will stay on my ship until Detective Dusty Carmichael arrives to claim them. She and her team will also be given access to the derelict ship. If she wishes to include you, whoever you are, then that will be her decision.”