Caught by Menace (20 page)

a thin stack of pamphlets onto the table and sat down.

“Each pamphlet wil give you information you’l need

to make your transition to this new life successfuly. The

first one is about navigating the ship and using al the

different devices in your home. The second is about your

rights aboard the ship and in this new society. The

rights aboard the ship and in this new society. The

procedure for filing for a separation is in there. The blue

one outlines your access to medical care and explains the

most common medications and procedures. The green

one is al about shopping in the retail section as wel as

understanding the monetary system here. It’s credits, by

the way.”

“Credits?”

Halie nodded. “You’l get the hang of it.” She lifted

her wrist. “The chip they gave you is your method of

payment. It’s attached to Menace’s bank account. The

money is deducted automaticaly.”

“That would have been handy back on Calyx,” Naya

murmured. “I wouldn’t have had to chase down so many

people who owed me money.”

“You were in business?”

“I owned a pawnshop.”

“How cool is that?” Halie seemed impressed. “You’re

going to be a great addition to our wives club.”

“I am?” Naya sipped her tea. “I’m not so sure about

joining a social club.”

“Oh, you have to!” Halie practicaly pleaded with her.

“It’s so nice to get together with other women from our

“It’s so nice to get together with other women from our

planet. We’re so outnumbered by men here. Plus we’re

doing good work.”

“How so?”

“We’ve created a domestic violence resource center.

Next month, they’re opening a new counseling division in

the med bay for couples who need a little help adjusting

or communicating. We’re getting a distance learning

program so those of us who want to finish our educations

can do so. Some of the mothers in the group have started

a playgroup and even have a babysitting pool that they

use to give one another a day or night off every week.”

Naya wasn’t so sure about that babysitting stuff but

she thought the idea of counseling was probably a good

one. Finishing school had always been a dream. “I guess

it wouldn’t hurt to come to one meeting.”

Halie beamed. “You’l love it—and I make cookies!”

Naya laughed. “I’m sure you do.”

Halie held her mug in both hands and sat back in her

chair. “What can I say? I’m a happy little homemaker.

We al fil different roles in life. Who knows? Maybe

you’l open the first wife-owned business on the ship.”

Finished with her breakfast, Naya reached for the

pamphlets. “Is that even possible?”

Halie shrugged. “I don’t see why not. There are

vacant storefronts in the market. You wouldn’t be able to

run a pawnshop. I’m not sure the concept would work

here. They don’t do debt or credit here.”

“I wasn’t realy thriled with running a pawnshop in the

first place,” Naya admitted. “It was just the easiest

business for me to get into at the time. The only way to

make a business work is to find a need that isn’t being

filed in the current market.”

“You mean like having access to comforts from home

or clothes that fit and aren’t ugly as homemade sin?”

Halie pinched the front of her boxy dress. “If you saw

what kinds of alterations I have to make just get my

clothes to fit!”

Naya sized up Halie. “You must have a ton of fabric

left over.”

“I turned some of it into napkins or throw pilows The

rest is in my scrap box.” She made a face. “Vicious

thinks it’s sily for me to keep the scraps but old habits,

you know?”

“Oh, I know.” Naya’s gaze fel to the top pamphlet.

Surprise gripped her. The drawing on the front was al

Surprise gripped her. The drawing on the front was al

too familiar. “Who drew this?”

Halie broke a cookie in half. “I did. Why?”

Naya’s startled gaze jumped to her new friend. What

had Danny said? The Artist had been Grabbed and lived

happily on a ship. Could it be? Was Halie the young

woman she’d known only as the Artist? “I bet my aunt

Ruthie Frances would love one of your paintings.”

Halie stiffened. Her shocked expression slowly faded.

“I know Ruthie would.”

Ruthie Frances. Red Feather. “Should we keep talking

in code or do I just come right out and ask?”

“Ask me.”

“You were part of the Red Feather. You drew

passports.”

“I did. And you?”

“I’m very good at smuggling.”

Halie’s eyes widened briefly. “Wait! Are you

Dankirk’s contact in Connor’s Run?”

Now it was Naya’s turn to be surprised. “I was. You

know Danny?”

“I spoke with him via my sister just the other day. He

has a list of women who want out of Harper’s Wel.

has a list of women who want out of Harper’s Wel.

Dankirk helped my sister escape to the colonies. How

are things now? Has the smuggling chain been busy?”

“There were riots in The City five weeks ago. The

government clamped down pretty tightly.”

“Riots?”

“Over food shortages,” Naya explained. “We had

people pouring into Connor’s Run and Grogan’s Mil.

There were so many cargo ships from the Jesco colony

making ilegal flyovers and taking passengers that the

colonies put up a barricade. The backlog for customs

processing in Safe Harbor and Jesco is so bad that some

of the ilegal immigrants were dying in the cargo holds.”

Halie gasped in shock. “That’s awful.”

“The fees for those kinds of transports have gone up

tremendously. The ships we work with like the
Shepherd

are stil doing low-fee transports, but it’s getting harder

and harder to move people. Finding people to sponsor

immigrants is almost impossible. The colonies have also

stopped offering paperless entry for women who win the

Grabs. I had to buy fake papers for Jennie and me. They

weren’t nearly as good as yours.”

“Jennie?”

“Jennie?”

Sadness squeezed her chest. “She’s my friend. Her

number was puled in the lottery so I bought my way

onto the list. We had a pact that we’d both run together

and get taken together if we couldn’t escape.”

“Is she here with you? I can put a cal through to her

quarters and have her over if you’d like to see her.”

Naya gulped down the grief that swamped her. “No,

she actualy made it to the safe zone where her boyfriend

was waiting.”

“Oh,” Halie said quietly. She reached across the table

and grabbed Naya’s hand. “I’m sorry.”

Naya looked at the friendly hand gripping hers.

Halie’s kindness overwhelmed her. “Thank you.”

“I know how hard it is to adjust to your new life. I’m

not promising it’s going to be sugar and sweetness. There

are going to be bumps. You’re probably going to want to

thrash Menace a few times but you’l get through it. If

you’re meant to be together, that is. If you’re not? You

come to me. I’l make sure you get your separation

papers and I’l help you find your way to the colonies

and your friend.”

Naya gawked at Halie. “You’d do that for me? But

Menace is your husband’s friend. Wouldn’t that make

Menace is your husband’s friend. Wouldn’t that make

things difficult between you?”

“You let me worry about Vicious. You just worry

about your relationship with Menace.” Halie puled her

hand back. “If you can make it work, I think you’l be

very happy. Menace is a wonderful man. Vicious

wouldn’t count him among his closest friends if he wasn’t

loyal and honest.”

Halie hadn’t said anything that Naya wasn’t already

thinking when it came to Menace. “I do like him. He’s

been patient and sweet with me. The sex is pretty

awesome too.”

Halie actualy blushed and dipped her gaze. “Yes,

these Harcos men seem to be masters of seduction.”

“Boy, that’s no joke. I thought Menace was going to

make me pass out last night.”

Halie laughed. “Yeah, I’ve, uh, been there quite a few

times.”

Naya knew enough about Halie’s hometown to guess

that she was probably a virgin when she’d come onboard

the
Valiant
. What a shock her first introduction to sex

with her sky warrior must have been!

“Why don’t we go dig through my closet and see if we

“Why don’t we go dig through my closet and see if we

can find you some shoes?” Halie gathered up their

dishes. “The first pair Vicious brought me was too big,

but I bet they’l fit you just fine.”

Naya folowed her out of the kitchen. Once in the

spacious master bedroom, she couldn’t ignore the door

to the couple’s playroom. Naya didn’t even want to

imagine what a frightening man like Vicious did to poor

Halie in there.

Folowing her gaze, Halie shot her an apologetic look.

“I should probably warn you about the officers-only club.

Menace wil want to take you there.”

“A club?”

“It’s a place where officers and their wives and

sometimes their single friends get together to play in

public or the theme rooms.”

Naya’s gut clenched. “I’l pass.”

“You might not be able to,” Halie replied, her voice

muffled as she stepped into the oversized closet. A

moment later she reappeared with a pair of simple black

flats. “These aren’t the most supportive shoes, but they’l

do until Menace can get you something else.”

Naya sat down on the bench at the end of Halie’s

massive bed and slipped on the shoes. “Why wouldn’t I

be able to pass on the invite to the sex club thing?”

“Vicious and I had only been together a day when he

came home with an invite to a private party given by

General Thorn. I didn’t want to go. I was terrified,

honestly, but I knew that if we didn’t go, Vicious might

be snubbed by his superior. For officers, the promotion

game is one that includes making appearances at a

variety of functions. Vicious gave me the choice to say

no, but I couldn’t do it.” Halie sat down next to her. “I

ended up wearing a cat costume.”

“Wait. What? A cat costume?”

Halie giggled and clasped her face in her hands. “I

know. How ridiculous, right? General Thorn has a fetish

for cat-play games. There are actualy groups of couples

who get together here on the
Valiant
for puppy-and-cat

play parties.”

“I don’t understand.” Naya tried to process Halie’s

information. “You dress up like a cat or a puppy and

pretend you’re one?”

“It’s a little more intense than that for couples who are

realy into it but, yes, basicaly,” Halie said. “It doesn’t

do anything for me but I know a few women who enjoy

do anything for me but I know a few women who enjoy

it very much. They find extreme pleasure in giving total

control to their husbands, their masters.”

Naya shook her head and slipped on the shoes.

“That’s batshit crazy, Halie.”

“In this society, they believe everyone is entitled to

their desires and their brand of kink. If you go to the

officers’ playroom, you’l probably see some strange

things. Wel…strange to women like you and me,” she

clarified. “To these guys, it’s as normal as breathing to

see a woman tied up, flogged and taken in public by her

husband and his two best friends.”

Naya blinked a few times. She would never admit it

aloud but there was something oddly aluring about

Halie’s description. “I don’t even know what to say to

that.”

“To each their own, I guess.”

Naya took a few test strides in the shoes. They were a

little roomy on the sides but they’d do. “Were you realy

angry when that party was over and Vicious brought you

home?”

“No,” Halie said, her face flushed. “Actualy I found it

al rather arousing there at the end. Vicious showed me

that there’s no shame in exploring my sexuality. When

that there’s no shame in exploring my sexuality. When

I’m with him, when his hands are on me, I feel braver

than ever and so incredibly secure.”

Naya understood that. “I felt that with Menace this

morning. It was…uncomfortable.”

“I know what you mean,” Halie assured her. “This

mix of pleasure and pain and dominance is confusing.

Even now, I sometimes have nights where I struggle with

giving up control to Vicious, but when I do? He always

rewards my trust.”