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OPERATION INGRATIATE wasn’t going terribly. Andie made a point of seeking out one or two crew members every day and offering her services. It involved a lot of fetching and carrying and more than a little cleaning, but she was starting to get smiles when she ran into people during meal times instead of hostile blank faces. Dr. Hayk had actually trusted her to review the inventory of some of their less critical medical supplies and Sayevi had let her fly the ship. Okay, so she’d sat in the pilot’s seat for about two minutes while Sayevi took a bathroom break and the autonav did most of the work, but Andie was still counting it.
Captain Alleyva hadn’t exactly warmed up, but she seemed to have caught on to what Andie was doing and Andie was almost certain she’d given a nod of approval when she caught Andie heading towards the engine room to see if she could do anything for Malax.
So her second week on the ship passed a little better than the first. Though the weirdness between her and Xandr still hadn’t resolved itself. Every time it looked like they’d have a moment alone something separated them, usually Captain Alleyva calling on Xandr to do some first mate’s duty that Andie hadn’t realized existed. And from the looks of frustration that Xandr shot at the intercom anytime Alleyva called for him, he hadn’t realized that those duties existed either.
They’d both gone for lunch at the same time and by some miracle the rest of the crew was elsewhere. The galley had a small rec room off to one side and was usually where everyone congregated when not actively working, but they must have been busy at that moment. Xandr had shoveled his food into his mouth so fast Andie feared he’d get a stomach ache, but when the intercom called for him only five minutes later she understood his haste.
“Is she hazing you?” Andie finally asked. “Or trying to─” She cut off that line of questioning, not wanting to reveal too much.
“Or what?” Xandr wasn’t letting her off the hook that easy.
It seemed so conceited to say it out loud, and super paranoid. But Andie had been listening to the intercom lately and it seemed that Xandr mostly got called to the captain when Andie and Xandr were speaking. “It seems like every time we start talking you get called away.” There, that wasn’t exactly an accusation.
Xandr glared at the intercom and he probably would have disintegrated the small box with the power of his mind if it was something his species was capable of. “I never realized how much work Keana did for me,” Xandr admitted, “so it’s a bit of a challenge for both of us to fit into our new roles.” He seemed like he was going to let the other part of her question go, but after a moment he sighed. “I don’t know if she’s doing it on purpose, but I know that I want to find time to spend with you.”
Andie swallowed around the sudden lump in her throat. She felt like a schoolgirl with a crush, and she knew that Xandr returned some kind of feeling for her. A week ago it had been hard to be sure, but while they hadn’t caught much time alone together, they’d both joined the crew for dinner every night and she’d spent plenty of time near him during those group gatherings that she could see he was treating her like someone he wanted to get to know. They played vid games together and shared the details of their favorite media shows. It was nothing too personal, nothing about their histories or their hopes and fears, but they’d touched on that back on Ixilta, and Andie was glad to take the step back. She and Xandr had dived into the deep end with their first meeting. Now it was time for them to remember how to swim in the shallows.
“We’ll find time,” she said. “I’m sure things will settle down eventually.”
Xandr stood and cleared his plate. He turned back toward her and paused for a moment, as if he wasn’t sure how he should say goodbye. But finally he just nodded and took off.
Andie slumped back into her chair. This was kind of ridiculous. Maybe she should just show up at his quarters that night with nothing but a robe on and get this over with. They knew they were attracted to each other, they knew there was a spark, but she couldn’t tell if the weirdly imposed distance was fanning the flames or dampening their connection. She’d never been this confused over a guy before.
Back on Earth things were simple enough. Find a guy, think he was cute, talk to him, kiss him, go on dates, sleep with him, find out he was a cheating loser or a thief, break it off, get drunk, have rebound sex with someone even worse, swear men off, and start all over again the next week. The system wasn’t perfect, but it was one she understood. She’d never had this weird dance where she was forced into such close proximity with a guy she liked but couldn’t do anything about it because of time constraints.
She finished her meal slowly and put thoughts of Xandr out of her mind. She wasn’t going to show up naked at his door, no matter how much her body cried out for release. She couldn’t risk reading the situation wrong when she was still relying on Xandr’s goodwill for her place on the ship. A few chores done for the rest of the crew wasn’t enough to convince them that she was worthy of her spot, and a part of her realized that sleeping with Xandr would complicate things further, even if everything between the two of them ended up perfectly. Did she really want to be known as the woman who’d slept her way onto the crew?
“Crew meeting in fifteen.” Xandr’s voice crackled over the comm and Andie shivered. She wanted that time alone with him, wanted to hear him whisper sweet dirty nothings in her ear as he plunged himself into her. She’d always liked sex, but it had been so long. Opportunities on Ixilta were few and far between. And there’d never been anyone as exciting as Xandr.
Once she was done eating and cleaning up the mess from her meal, Andie headed towards the cockpit. Sayevi always welcomed her company and it was better than scurrying off to her room. She might have waited in the rec area, but she didn’t want to intrude on the upcoming meeting and she was sure Sayevi wouldn’t mind if she hung around the cockpit for however long it took.
The pilot smiled when she saw her and tilted her head towards the captain’s chair. Luckily the crew didn’t stand on that much ceremony and Alleyva didn’t care who sat in her seat if she wasn’t in the room.
“Thank the gods we’ve got a new job,” Sayevi said as Andie made herself comfortable. “There’s only so much maintenance we can do. A week in deep space is way too much.”
“Don’t most deep space flights take months?” Andie asked. Despite being light years from home she had almost no personal experience. Space travel was expensive, and until she’d been abducted her entire life had taken place on Earth. And afterward, she’d been stuck on Ixilta.
“I guess,” Sayevi conceded, “but we’ve got our favorite haunts, you know? This close to the empire we usually stick to more legit shit, but any job that’s legit and lucrative enough to be worth it is highly competitive. And generally boring. So, so, so boring. I hope the captains have something fun for us.”
“Captains?” Andie knew who she was talking about, but it was kind of funny to watch the crew dance around it. They’d have to settle the issue at some point, but there’d been no major issues from the de facto dual leadership the Seventh was under at the moment.
“You know what I mean.” Sayevi scowled. She leaned forward and punched something into one of the dozens of screens in front of her.
“So you’re sure that this is about a job?” There’d been another crew meeting right after Andie had come aboard and that one had been for a job too.
“It’s usually why we have them,” the pilot responded. She unclipped her safety harness and stood. “You ready?”
“I will take care of your baby,” Andie promised solemnly. Then her face cracked into a smile. “And I’ll come running screaming towards you if anything weird starts blinking.”
Sayevi gave her a puzzled look. “No, you’re coming to the meeting. You’re part of the crew, aren’t you?”
Now it was Andie’s turn to be confused. “I am?”
“If you don’t come to the meeting you’ll never know.” She reached down and tugged on Andie’s arm. “Come on.”
Her nerves wanted to keep her in place, but Andie knew that Sayevi was right. She’d never be accepted if she didn’t at least try. She hoped it was okay to leave the ship flying itself, but Sayevi didn’t seem too concerned and as they made their way back to the rec room Andie told herself that it would be fine. This was what she wanted.
She was going to grab her future with both hands and never let go.
***
“SO SHE CAME.” KEANA sounded impressed when she spotted Andie sitting next to Sayevi on the big couch in the rec room. “I’ll give her credit for determination.”
Xandr grit his teeth and restrained the first response that wanted to leap out. Keana had been making little jabs like this for days, and he knew that responding defensively would only encourage her. For some reason she didn’t like Andie, and even if Andie’s overtures at helping the crew were appreciated, Keana was waiting for something bad to happen. “You wanted her here,” he reminded his captain.
“I thought that was you,” Keana shot back. They were standing off to the side of the room while the rest of the crew made themselves comfortable. Though Keana had given them fifteen minutes to show up, Xandr knew from experience it would take several more to get them to calm down and pay attention. For some reason a band of outlaws wasn’t the most disciplined group.
Keana called them to order and eventually everyone settled down. Xandr took his place at her side and tried not to let it grate too much that he wanted to be the one choosing their jobs and laying them out, assigning roles and setting goals. He’d been doing it for a decade and nothing felt more natural than leading this group. But it was his own lack of discipline that had seen him end up in a dingy cell for months while Keana had to do her damnedest to keep the group together, and he wasn’t going to pay her back by taking everything she’d earned.
Not yet, at least.
She pulled up the mission details on the holo player and projected them for everyone to see. “We’re hitting a little place called Quordon. They’re an independent planet about two light years out of the official reaches of the Oscavian Empire. That means we can almost guarantee fleet presence, but they shouldn’t be doing anything to protect the planet. Sayevi, we’re going to need to be stealthy.”
“Got it, captain.” The pilot practically vibrated with excitement. She loved a challenge, and staying off of Oscavian radar was the most important thing anyone could ask her to do.
“Quordon’s got a mining operation set up and most of their business is with several minor noble houses in the empire. Shipments go out every third week and our buyer here has guaranteed that the next shipment will need to rely on their backup methods to get off planet as their main transports will be disabled. This is all happening during the local town’s main market week and there will be a ton of people on the ground. Population is mostly Oscavian, but there is enough alien presence that most of us won’t stand out.” All eyes stayed forward, but Xandr was sure everyone was purposely not looking at Malax.
“Local law enforcement will be spread thin between assignments at the market and the shipping. This town has never been hit from space as far as we can tell, and most conflict comes from various mining interests. Sayevi, me, Taryn, Kiran, and Malax will hit the shipment. Xandr and Andie are going to the market to cause a distraction. Hayk will stay on board to deal with any injuries that may arise. Any questions?”
There always were, but Xandr only listened with half an ear. Instead he focused on Andie, who’d gone a bit pale at the news that she’d be included on the mission. But she squared her shoulders and kept her mouth shut, as if she was afraid that saying anything might get her pulled off the assignment. Xandr wanted to reassure her that she’d do great. What they were doing now was far less dangerous than what they’d done together on Ixilta, but he knew she’d have to experience it for herself. The first mission was difficult for everyone.
So he’d just have to make sure that this one went perfectly.
