Chapter 3

THREE

T apping the corner of the holo display flickering across the tabletop, Elias queued up the next item on the meeting agenda. The Chaos wasn't a large ship, and as a merchant corvette, she had no CIC or war room. They had the mess, and this booth, which served as dining table and conference table. Fixer, Nessa and Qek were squashed into the opposite side. Elias shared his side with Zed. They'd figured this configuration out a few weeks back, when they'd officially become a crew of five.

"We need to talk about Agrius." Elias expanded the holo so everyone could see the map of the galaxy he'd set up. "They're not interested in credits, so it's time to think laterally." Expressions darkened and closed. "And I can't say as I'm interested in giving them what they really want."

"Not up to sacrificing yourself for your crew?" Fixer wore a wry smile.

"Should we indicate we would like to negotiate?" Qek asked.

"Not sure what we have to bargain with." Elias prodded the holographic map. "So our safest bet is to avoid their territory."

"Got to be a number," Zed murmured.

"Hmm?"

"Everyone has a number. They're a criminal cartel, right? They didn't choose that line of business because they didn't want to make money."

"I'd join for the tattoo and spectacularly bad fashion choices." Fixer shrank back slightly as everyone turned to glare at him. "What? Just trying to lighten the mood."

"Back to a plan that actually might work, I figured we'd mark up a map and then choose our jobs accordingly."

Zed spoke quietly. "So five hundred k wasn't enough. We'll double it. Triple it."

"We could buy ourselves a new ship for that. A fleet of ships." Elias tapped the table, his finger sinking through the galactic map. "And then conduct business outside of their territory."

"You know what, maybe Qek is right." Nessa waited for everyone to look up before she continued. "Maybe we should contact them. We didn't leave any bodies behind this time, that must count for something."

All eyes turned to Zed. He glowered.

"I, for one, appreciate the fact Zed didn't kill anyone," Fix put in, obviously trying to nip something in the bud. "But I'd rather avoid all conflict if we can." Everyone looked at him again. "Hey, just because I'm an asshole doesn't mean I enjoy getting shot and knifed every time we try to conduct business. Thing is, the more times Zed has to Zone, the closer?—"

"Not talking about that right now." Zed's tone was dangerous.

Fix's expression acquired a mutinous cast. "Yeah? Well, I think we should. Your health should be the next item on the agenda."

Elias suddenly wished he'd sat on the inside of the booth. If Zed decided to make a move, like a quick exit, he was in the way.

"I'm fine. "

Yep, fine as the powder he'd just ground between his clenched teeth.

Opposite, Fixer's jaw was just as tight. "And you're gonna stay that way. So that means avoiding Agrius."

Qek's wide-eyed gaze bounced back and forth. Nessa borrowed a few of Fix's fidgets.

Elias made an attempt to wrest back control of the meeting. "I've marked what we know on this map here, if you'd all care to take a look." He hadn't had much to go on. Previous encounters, publically registered companies, chatter on SkipNet. "We need more data, obviously, and I'd like to avoid gathering that at knife point." He kept his gaze pointed downward, but he thought he could hear teeth grinding. "Qek, Fix, Zed…hell, even you must have contacts who know something, Ness. We'll flesh out this map and then plan our next move accordingly."

"We still going to deliver the shit to Risus?" Fix asked.

"Contracted to do so and we've a docket for a job from there. Risilium to be delivered to Alpha."

"There's no way Agrius is in Sol. The Belters own the criminal activity in that system." Fix glanced up. "From there, we can hop back and forth to the Hub, maybe." The Hub served as nominal center of the galaxy. Each species—humans, ashushk and stin—had a station there, and a gate to and from their "home" system.

Elias turned to consult his new security officer. The line of Zed's jaw had softened and Elias thanked all the stars Zed had a more even temper than Fixer. Though, for his part, Fix was doing well. He hadn't insulted anyone yet.

The meeting was young…

"It's a sound plan," Zed said.

"Would Anatolius Industries have reliable information on the placement of a criminal cartel?" Qek asked.

Zed's gaze flicked toward Fix and back again. He shook his head, then answered to the contrary. "Maybe."

"Brennan seemed to have more than a passing familiarity with their business practices," Fixer said.

Had Fix and Qek cooked this up between them? As a plan to get Zed in contact with his family, it was loose. But given Zed's razor-sharp wit and instinct, maybe that was for the best. He'd have seen through anything more convoluted. Perhaps have been insulted by it.

"I'll see what I can do." Zed's tone closed the line of inquiry.

Elias tapped the corner of the holo. The map dissolved as emitted light rearranged into a different pattern. "Okay, next up is supply." He looked up. "Fix, why does our water smell like shit?"

Zed knew that look on Flick's face. It was the one that said they were going to hash something out, whether Zed wanted to or not. Not was definitely Zed's preference—mostly because talking about shit wasn't going to fix anything. All it would do would be dim the light in Flick's eyes, turning them dark and dead, and Zed wanted to hold off on that for as long as possible.

When Elias dismissed the crew, Zed remained in his seat, waiting for the rest of them to head back to their posts. Flick continued giving him the look. Zed continued trying to ignore it.

"I swear to God, you are both such little boys sometimes." Ness huffed. "Fixer, go do your job and let me do mine."

Oh, shit.

"Ness—"

She glared at Flick and pointed to the mess door. "Go."

Flick's jaw clenched, then he looked at Zed again. "We're not done."

"I know," Zed said softly.

He did know. He was only delaying the inevitable, but…he had to.

A trace amount of tension left Nessa's shoulders as Flick exited the mess. She turned to Zed with a gentle smile. "Want anything?"

"Got any of that carrot cake left?"

Her smile widened. "Sure."

Zed relaxed, sinking back into the booth. He blinked—and stared at the plate with a slice of cake that sat before him. His head ached. With a sigh, he looked up to see Ness watching him from the opposite side of the booth, her expression full of concern.

"It's happening more often, isn't it?" she murmured.

Zed stared at the cake, unable to answer.

"I noticed it about a week ago. You'd space out on conversations, maybe once a day." Reaching across the table, Ness clasped a hand over one of his clenched fists. "It's not just once a day anymore."

"Never was," Zed admitted. He drew in a shaky breath, then forged onward. "I hardly noticed at first because the episodes lasted a couple of seconds at most. Now they're getting longer."

"You need to talk with Fixer."

"And say what? ‘I'm sorry my brain is giving out'?" He scoffed. "Talking about it isn't going to change anything, Ness. It'll just make it real."

"It is real. Honey, you can't hide this from him."

"I'm not trying to hide it from him, I just—" Zed speared his fingers through his hair and tugged. Trying to come up with the right words to explain what he was thinking shouldn't be this hard. "It's going to be slow, and it's going to be painful, and I want to avoid seeing… that in his eyes for weeks, okay?"

"What?"

"Pity." Zed sighed. "Maybe I should just…go." Get off the ship somewhere and disappear. That had been his original plan after the AEF tossed him and his team aside like so much garbage—lie low, fade into nothing, wait for the end. It had its appeal.

"Like hell!" Nessa glared at him, her fiery red curls bouncing with her ire. "We are a crew. We've stood by you and we'll be damned if you throw that loyalty aside just because it's inconvenient to your pride." She tugged his fingers out of their fist and intertwined their hands. When she spoke again, her voice was gentle. "It's not going to be easy on any of us, let alone you and Fixer. But we've got your back, Zed. Don't ever doubt that."

He nodded and squeezed her hand.

"Right." Ness straightened but didn't let go of him. "Eat your cake, then we'll head to med bay. I want to do a full workup on you, get a baseline established, and then we'll do follow-ups every couple of days to track progression." Her eyes flashed with determination. "Maybe I can't stop it, but I'll be damned if I won't try to slow it down."

Zed's smile felt weak and unstable. "Thanks."

The fact she wanted to try, that had to count for something—but he doubted any of her efforts would make a difference.