Chapter 1

Chapter 1

S tatic blared in Cassidy Ryan’s eardrums. She tapped the implant behind her left ear several times before the annoying sound reduced in volume. Cassidy would have to visit the health center to get the damned microchip fixed before she started her next assignment, assuming she had the time.

“ When are we departing? ” a very angry cat asked. The static still impacted the interface’s functioning between her first officer and herself.

Felines had unpredictable mood swings. They’d be impatient one moment and lounging under heat lamps the next. However, they were loyal to a fault and followed orders without questions.

“ I haven’t met with Command yet. ” Her mind pushed the thought through the implant to her pilot. “ After the meeting, I have several errands to run. Get off The Fury and breathe in some fresh air. Until I get our new assignment, I won’t know how long we’ll be in space before a break. ”

When she was promoted to captain, The Fury was the first ship she’d been assigned. The craft was small but fast. Whenever she was offered a larger ship, Cassidy always declined. Galactic Solutions, GS for short, had an ever-growing armada of crafts. She called the company that gave her orders Command because that’s what they did. GS had enough contracts with the Cosmic Consortium government to be considered quasi-military.

She and her crew normally received orders through interstellar communication. The instructions that she return to Earth had been extremely unusual. It only meant whatever they’d be ordered to do had to be done face-to-face. Her mind struggled with the implications of what it all meant.

A woman dressed in the severe Galactic Solutions uniform walked toward her. Cassidy refused to wear the putrid olive-colored uniform. She was a civilian craft captain, not a soldier. The female’s steady gaze told her she was the officer’s destination.

“Ryan, you’re to come with me.” The woman turned without validating she followed. No salutation or small talk occurred between them. It was all business. Cassidy figured they had nothing in common other than their gender.

They entered the secured area through a secondary entrance. No credentials were required, just a menacing-looking security guard and sufficient technical hardware. The equipment that scanned her body was thorough enough to know what she ate for breakfast.

The sound of the woman’s hard high heels echoed through the hall they walked down after clearing security. Her own cushioned shoes muffled any noise. There was nothing on the near-white walls to distract her. A random side thought would’ve been welcomed at this point to calm her nerves.

Her black jumpsuit and unbound flowing red hair made her stand out among those in the hall they’d entered. She caught several men giving her the once over with their eyes. Her green irises immediately returned to the woman’s head in front of her.

“We’re here,” the officer said as she entered a code into the keyboard. Old technology compared to what she witnessed earlier.

Cassidy never met the man who was her current superior. Her bosses changed multiple times over the ten years she piloted The Fury . She was surprised to see how young the man behind the desk appeared to be.

Simpson Howard rose to greet her. “Thank you for coming all this way to meet with me. You and your crew have the best mission record out there.”

She took the hand offered in greeting. His brown eyes warmed slightly at the physical contact. Simpson’s chestnut-colored hair fell slightly above his shirt’s collar. Everything about him was nicely groomed, including his uniform which was void of any wrinkles.

Cassidy held her tongue instead of telling him she’d been ordered here. Otherwise, there wasn’t a chance in hell she would’ve made the trip. Remaining silent over the years led to constant pay-grade promotions. Not that she had any free time to spend the currency she’d accumulated over the years.

“It is my pleasure, sir.” A little sucking up was harmless. “After so many long-range communications, it’s nice to finally meet you.”

The odds were he’d be gone by the end of the year. She never burned bridges. Who knew what position Simpson would stumble into next?

“I’d like you to take six passengers into the Gamma Five asteroid belt,” Simpson said.

“Into an asteroid belt, sir?” She must have heard him wrong. No one in their right mind entered the most dangerous area of space, especially the one in the Gamma Five system. There wasn’t navigation software for that portion of space.

“You heard correctly,” he remarked. “Be prepared to leave tomorrow at 0800. Enjoy your short stay on Earth.”

She stared blankly at Simpson. That couldn’t be the extent of her assignment. Maybe more thorough orders would be transmitted once she returned to her ship.

“Will mission parameters be communicated?” she asked.

“Squadron Commander Branson Goody will provide you everything you’ll require tomorrow. This is an off-the-books mission.”

She’d heard of such missions but had never been assigned one. They were extremely dangerous and if anything went wrong Galactic Solutions could claim ignorance. All of a sudden, her ship and crew were deemed expendable.

***

Cassidy stood outside the docking ring awaiting her passengers. She hadn’t told her crew about their assignment. They weren’t suspicious about their next job because she never gave them specifics about their orders. Her team was there to fly, maintain, and protect the ship, nothing more.

Five soldiers exited one ship and headed toward her. They were dressed all in black, carrying two duffle bags apiece. Based on how they carried the bags, she imagined they held weapons, not clothing.

Each of them had the Cosmic Consortium governmental patch on their uniforms. It was the only galactic government recognized and had a strong military branch. Since The Fury was a small ship, she rarely transported military personnel.

“You Captain Ryan?” the only female soldier among the group asked.

The woman had platinum hair cut so short, she appeared bald. Her light blue eyes bore right through her. An inch-long scar ran down her left cheek. Cassidy wondered how many additional scars the woman had. She’d definitely seen battle.

“Yes, I am,” she replied.

Cassidy wasn’t usually lost for words. She’d never made small talk with a soldier before. Her missions usually involved hauling small valuable freight. From time to time, she’d also transport passengers, mostly VIP galactic senators or influential business professionals.

“My orders are to report to you. My name is Regina Sharpe, but everyone calls me Reg. Commander Goody has been delayed at GS discussing mission parameters. I’m to oversee the loading of cargo onto your ship.”

Reg turned and snapped her fingers. The four other soldiers returned to the other ship after placing the heavy bags on the docking bay floor. Cassidy wondered how much cargo The Fury would be hauling. Simpson had mentioned she’d be taking on six soldiers. There had been no mention of what they would be transporting.

“I wasn’t expecting to take on cargo,” Cassidy admitted. “Would it help if I open the cargo hold?”

“That won’t be necessary,” Reg replied. “We’ve only got containers and duffels to haul over. Food stores delivery should arrive any second now. Do you have a cook on board or will we have to fend for ourselves?”

They lived on freeze-dried food they hydrated. Their food wasn’t tasty, but it had the nutrients that kept them all healthy.

“My human crew fend for themselves,” she replied. “The cats eat kibble and canned food.”

“Cats?” Reg asked.

“We’ve got three genetically enhanced felines with neurotransmitters.”

Reg’s eyes widened. “Your cats fly the ship? I’ve read about the phenomenon, I’ve just never run across any before. Wendell is going to love it. He’s allergic to cats.”

Command knew her ship had three feline staff. She wondered why they’d assign her the task of transporting the squad when one of them was allergic to dander. The majority of their fleet didn’t have cats or dogs aboard.

“Titus interfaces with our ship’s system and flies the craft,” she said. “Jasper monitors the engines while VIC maintains life support. The three cats communicate with us through microchip implants hardwired into their brains. Myself and the two other human crew members possess the same technology.”

“You trust a cat to maintain life support?” Reg asked in horror.

Cassidy shrugged. “If we die, so do they.”

Reg shook her head. “And to think I was afraid of getting cut down by laser fire. A cat gets ticked off and I suffocate to death.”

Cassidy opened her mouth to respond when she noticed the best-looking man she’d ever laid eyes on walking down the docking hallway. His hawk-like facial features made it impossible to take her eyes off him. Intelligent blue eyes completed the package. If he bore any battle wounds, they weren’t on his face.

His eyes scanned the activity occurring as equipment was loaded onto her ship. If he was their commander, he didn’t appear to be in a hurry to take off. If they were to meet their departure time, they had less than an Earth’s hour.

The dreamboat’s baby blues focused on her. “I take it you are Cassidy Ryan. I’m Commander Goody. Will we be able to depart as planned?”

Why did he make it sound that if they were delayed making their planned departure it would be her fault? Didn’t he realize she’d been waiting for him?

She displayed the sweetest smile she could muster. “If all your gear is aboard, I can tell Titus to release the docking clamps and we can leave.”

Goody scratched his arrogant chin. “I’d like to talk to Titus before we leave.”

“Do you have a special implant that will allow you to talk to animals?” she asked. “Jasper, VIC, and Titus require the standard RSV 3.0 model.”

“VIC?” he asked.

“Very Important Cat,” she responded. “He actually has another name, but since he controls life support, we call him whatever he likes.”

Branson’s face reddened and he stormed off.

Reg cackled. “Cass, I hope you don’t mind me calling you that. I don’t think we’ll be leaving based on GS’s timetable.”

Cassidy didn’t mind. What bothered her was Goody’s dominating nature. She’d known him for barely a minute and she didn’t like or trust him. Regardless of how long the mission would take, it was going to be painful.

***

Niles Lindsay secured the soldiers’ gear to prevent any damage to whatever they carried. Space contained turbulent pockets that didn’t always show on navigational software. Cass’s cargo master’s anal personality prevented him from ever releasing a damaged crate in all the years he worked aboard The Fury .

The loner liked the isolation of space travel and provided Cass with the occasional sexual release when the mood struck her. Most of the time, she didn’t know he was aboard unless there was a question about the cargo or she had an itch she couldn’t scratch by herself.

“I don’t like not knowing what we’re shipping,” Niles growled to her. He was almost as bad as the cats. “Whenever you carry human cargo, they don’t require room in my domain.”

She cringed whenever he referred to their passengers in that manner.

Niles’s light brown hair fell past his shoulders. He normally kept it tied behind his neck. He appeared younger than his thirty-five years would indicate. His multi-colored hazel eyes were his most striking feature.

“It’s a week to the Gamma Five asteroid belt,” she informed him. “I’m not sure how long we’ll be there or where we’ll drop off the soldiers after the mission has been completed.”

“What exactly is the mission?”

“Simpson Howard wouldn’t tell me,” she admitted. “I doubt those cartons contain humanitarian aid. Whoever these soldiers are, they warrant fresh rations. My mouth watered as they carried aboard the stores. There’s enough food to feed an army.”

Their rarely used refrigerator unit now teemed with vegetables, fruit, meat, fish, and dairy items. Cabinets were filled with staples for baking bread and other items. If they ended up dying, at least they would’ve eaten like royalty before they perished.

“ Sorry for the interruption ,” Titus communicated through their link. “ Commander Goody is aboard and we are cleared to release the clamps and get the hell out of here. Goody is meeting with Elon in weapons control. ”

She swore under her breath. Elon Kwon’s existence and their weapon capability were closely held secrets. If it became common knowledge of the weaponry aboard The Fury , attacks against them would become more severe. Every past attack had been handled with ruthless force and no one was left alive to tell tales. That was the primary reason for their exemplary success results.

On the way to weapon control, Cassidy ran into VIC. The Siamese cat was thirty percent larger than the typical house feline. He also took up half her bed when he slept with her. Space was cold and having three cats to keep her warm guaranteed a good night’s sleep.

“ Who the hell is this Goody fellow? ” VIC asked. “ He’s got Elon all riled up. The guy is worthless to me when he’s in that condition. ”

“ Calm down, VIC ,” she said. “ I’m heading there now. ”

“ I’m going with you. ” Even through the pathway, he sounded pissed off.

When she entered weapon control her heart skipped a beat. She was once again taken aback by Branson’s rugged good looks. His face was framed by black hair that brought out the severity of his features. She could imagine running her fingers along his chiseled cheekbones. Cassidy couldn’t tell how powerful the rest of him was built because of his bulky uniform.

“The bastard here won’t turn over his login credentials to your weapon system,” Goody bellowed.

Her nostrils flared in response to his tone. “Excuse me, but this is my ship and Elon and VIC don’t turn over anything to you or your team.”

VIC growled as Goody’s intense stare migrated to the cat. She never clipped his claws just in case they were boarded. They were currently razor sharp.

“How do I communicate to your crew?” Branson asked.

“You don’t communicate to my crew,” she replied. “My job is to get you to the asteroid field and that’s it.”

She didn’t like the menacing grin that appeared on Branson Goody’s face.

He handed her the envelope he clutched in his hand. “Here are your official orders. Go ahead and read them so the damned tabby on the bridge can release the docking ring and we can be on our way.”

Cassidy ripped open the envelope and read the document. She felt the blood drain from her face. They were so screwed.