Chapter 7

With a sigh, I dropped both feet onto the floor, stood up and placed my coffee cup on Philippe's desk, turned and greeted the ladies.

They were dressed very differently than they had been on the ship. Instead of the coveralls, each wore slacks, silky blouses, and short jackets. No one wears skirts or dresses where the possibility of gravity loss might cause embarrassment. Anna and Katherine's outfits were well tailored and in the casual to formal range of fashion while Mari's were more functional though still well tailored. I suspected she was armed with at least a taser but more likely with a stun pistol. Firearms on the station were prohibited, as a rule, but someone of Anna Estebahn's status and they bent the rules for her protection.

"Lady Estebahn, Ms. Katherine, Ms. Delero. It's a pleasure to see you again."

Anna looked like she was about to chew me out for calling her 'Lady Estebahn' when I gave a small jerk of my head towards Philippe. She caught on quick and recovered near seamlessly. "Thank you, Privateer. I hope this was a pleasant surprise."

"It is," I said though it may not have totally sounded that way. In a way it was a nice surprise and in a way it wasn't. I like to have some control of my life. While being in the Privateers takes away a good portion of that, I felt that I still retained some. Right now I was feeling like I had none and it came across to Anna. She looked at me with some concern and I mouthed 'Later' to her.

Philippe seemed to sense the awkwardness and cleared his throat. I turned back to him and some of the mirth that he had felt was replaced with sympathy.

"You need to see Jonesy and pick up your orders. You're on detached assignment until further notice. Don't fu- ahem," he stopped himself looking a little embarrassed. "Don't mess around. Every system you go to on your trip to Prime, check in with the local HQ. All travel plans will be filed with the Privateers."

"Pardon me for asking, but why is that?" Mari asked.

Philippe looked at me. I saw that he wanted to be sure that I understood what was going on. I turned and face the group. "Evidence shows that the former captain was hired to aid in the kidnapping." I glanced at Philippe. "I assume the same for the pirate crew?" He nodded to me.

"That means that whoever hired them is still out there."

Anna and Katherine both were looking at me with wide eyes. This was obviously the first they had heard this. Mari was nodding as if confirming something that she had suspected.

"Both captain and pirates don't know who hired them. It was all done through intermediaries and blind communications," Philippe said.

I went on. "Travel plans filed with the regular passenger terminals are public records. With me filing plans through the Privateers, we'll be able to move fairly anonymously. Privateers don't want pirates to know how many of us are in a system at any time."

"Take a few days and come up with some plans. I don't want all the details but I do want to see something. There's something about this that stinks but I can't put my finger on it."

"Ms. Delero and I will coordinate and come up with some options. She should have some input since this concerns her clients."

"Agreed. Get back to me ASAP with what you've come up with and maybe I help hash out some more." With that, Philippe escorted us out of his office, telling me to get to work.

I walked to Jonesy's office, grabbed the data chip that had copies of my file and new orders that was waiting for me, and left. I'd review the orders later. I gathered up the women and l led the way out of HQ and back towards the docks and 'Shivari'.

On the way, Anna started in on me. "Max, what the hell-"

She was interrupted by Mari. "Lady Estebahn, wait until we're somewhere private to discuss this," she said in a quiet but firm voice.

Anna looked like she wanted to argue but didn't, which I was glad for. I hate making public spectacles.

I was in the lead making a path with Mari bringing up the rear. The crowds had thinned so it wasn't too hard to make good time. My posture and the look on my face probably also had something to do with it. I kept my eyes moving, looking for anyone taking a more than casual interest in us.

I checked in with Sam. "How's the area around the dock entrance?"

"It's clear, Max. I'm monitoring the area and no one's doing anything they shouldn't be."

"Right. See you in a few minutes."

We arrived and moved quickly through the transit shaft and into my ship. Inside, I directed them to the galley, telling them I'd be there in a little while, and headed for the bridge. Once there, I closed the hatch and fell into the command chair. I sat there and stared up at nothing for a minute. I needed to calm down. I had felt anger building in me since we left HQ. Sam was there, watching me. With a sigh, I brought my head up and looked at her.

"What the hell am I going to do, Sam?" She just shrugged and shook her head. "I swear, I want to beat the shit out of something but I just don't know what."

"Why?"

"I feel like I've lost what little control I had over my life and I'm getting frustrated because I can't figure out how to get it back."

Sam nodded to me. "I thought it was funny when Philippe was telling you about the Councilor and he what he wanted to do. But as you laid out the situation and the women as a factor now, I started to see the problems and the effect they were having on you. You need to tell our guests this so they'll understand. You also need to tell them what you need from them while we do this."

I nodded my head and sighed again. I scrubbed my face with both hands then stood up, trying to project a calm I didn't feel. "I'll see you in the galley." Sam nodded. She would wait until I was in the galley before she would project herself there.

Before I left, I inserted the data chip with my orders into a console and transferred the contents to Sam. I'd look over them later.

On my way to the galley I heard whispering. I made some noise with my boots to warn them that I was heading their way and the whispering died down. I entered the galley to find the women standing in a group and waiting.

When I stopped near them, Anna took a step forward. "Max, I want to apologize. I didn't think that us being here would cause you problems. I'm really sorry if this is making you uncomfortable." She looked like she was on the verge of tears.

I wasn't sure what I should do at that point other than to say "And I'm sorry also and don't feel too bad. This situation has thrown me for a loop. I feel like I've lost some control of my life. I've reacted badly and taken it out on you."

When I finished up, Anna threw her arms around my neck and hugged me tightly, my face tucked into the side of her neck. I placed my hands on her hips and held her there. She pulled her arms back and held my face in her hands. Leaning back a bit she kissed my forehead, tilted my face up, and kissed me. It was a gentle kiss that told me everything would be alright. I hoped so.

Anna stepped back and I released her only to have Katherine take her place. It was a repeat of what I'd done with Anna, kisses and all. When Katherine stepped back, Mari decided to lighten the mood and hugged my face into her breasts and kissing the top of my head with a resounding smooch. When she pulled back, she had a smirk on her face. "Do I need to get you a stool to get my kiss?"