Star Cruise: Marooned

Copyright 2015 by Jean D. Walker

This book is a work of fiction. The names, places, characters and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Cover Art by Fiona Jayde

DEDICATION

To my daughters Valerie and Elizabeth, and my brother David for all his encouragement and support through the years. He’d be a great guy to have along in any survival situation!

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Julie C and The E-book Formatting Fairies!

STAR CRUISE: MAROONED

By

Veronica Scott

CHAPTER ONE

The shuttle broke out of the cloud layer and swooped over a breathtaking vista of pink and green foliage, practically glowing in the vid screens. The rainforest spread across the planet as far as the scanners could detect. Clouds of multicolored birds flew above the treetops, drawing the eye to their wheeling movement across the turquoise sky. Here and there, rainbows curved from puffy clouds, where seasonal showers had added moisture to the air. As Meg walked through the cabin, offering refreshments to their guests, she attempted to direct their attention to the view of the planet. Anchored by trees soaring hundreds of feet from the surface, the foliage and avian wildlife were something never seen on the highly civilized worlds where these people lived and worked. Although they’d paid a staggering amount of credits to be taken to this site, neither the primary guest, nor the people he’d brought, seemed to care. Drinking, playing cards, and indulging in sexual innuendo took all their attention.
 

Not much changed from cruise to cruise with the rich and powerful, despite Meg’s best efforts to share the simple pleasure she found in the surroundings at each port of call.

At the rear of the main cabin, she found at least one passenger watching the screen above her seat. “How are you doing?”

Callina Finchon Bettis took her attention from the view for a moment, giving Meg a little wave. “Fine, smooth ride so far. When can we see the Falls?”

“Soon. The pilot likes to swoop in from the front, as if we’re going to splash right through the water.” Meg leaned closer. “But don’t worry, he veers to the side at the last moment.” She placed an iced fruit drink at the woman’s elbow. “Maybe five more minutes.”

As Callina murmured thanks, Meg retreated to the galley, where she found the only other crew member besides the pilot.

“Passengers all happy now?” he asked, raising one eyebrow.

“I don’t think this bunch is ever happy,” she said. “You’ll find generational billionaires rarely are, when you’ve done more of these private charters. But at least I’ve supplied them with feelgoods.” She slid the drink tray into the chiller. “Did you need something?”

Simon ‘Red’ Thomsill held up his hands in mock surrender. “I know, this is your territory and I shouldn’t be here, Guild rules. But the pilot wanted coffee.”

Hands on her hips, Meg smothered an impatient sigh. “First of all, he should have buzzed me for it, and secondly, he knows perfectly well only guests are entitled to genuine Terran coffee.”

“Wow, are you this dedicated to rules all the time?” He leaned against the emergency portal and studied her, one eyebrow raised as if he might be trying to tease her.

Two internal call signals pinged, one right after the other. From the cabin, she heard female passengers swearing at each other. She straightened her tunic as if gathering determination, and headed out to mediate whatever the problem was now. “No tip is going to be big enough,” she said under her breath. Pausing on the threshold, she glanced at Red. “I’m responsible for the coffee inventory on this shuttle, and it comes out of my pay if the weight is short.”

“I didn’t know.”

“Yeah, there’s a lot you don’t know, rookie. But Drewson does. The synth stuff crew members drink is over there.” Pointing at the proper carafe, she left the galley as more voices joined the clamor in the passenger section.

One of the scantily clad women had spilled her beverage all over another’s ample cleavage, staining both the woman’s skin and skimpy bikini top. The aggressor was pulling the other’s hair and screaming insults, while her victim tried to land some blows anywhere she could reach. The primary guest laughed and made bets with the two men seated next to him, wagering on which woman would prevail.

Meg waded into the fray. “Ladies, please, we’re about to land. You’re required to be in your seats before we can make our final approach.” She caught the second woman’s elbow. Modulating her voice to a soothing tone, Meg said, “I can remove the stain, Ma’am, no problem.”

The women paused in their altercation, gazing beyond her with wide eyes. A moment later, both fluffed their hair.
 

Without turning, Meg knew Red had followed her. She’d observed his effect on females more than once already on this cruise. Something about his 6’4” height, the heavily muscled biceps, the chiseled features, the sparkling green eyes…Well, okay, to be honest, he had the same effect on her, but she wasn’t about to let him know. Been there, done that with a tempting crewman or two on her early tours. Crew romances were nothing but trouble when the first attraction inevitably flamed out.
 

Although Red was more tempting than anyone she’d met in a long time.

“Second Officer Drewson asked me to come and make sure the accommodations and the service are satisfactory,” he said, his voice deep and slow.

“Oh, yes, we’re fine.” The girl with the stained top brushed at her skin, accentuating her ample chest with the gesture, and smiled as if she hadn’t been screeching obscenities a moment prior.

“So nice of you.” The other batted her three eyes at Red, green lashes sweeping her cheeks. She held out her arm. “I think I might have a scratch.”
 

“I’ll get the medkit while Miss Antille helps Sharmali,” he said, leaning close to inspect the tiny red mark on the passenger’s creamy skin.

“Fine.” Meg was pissed and she planned to let him know it. What the seven hells did he think he was doing, interfering with her care for her passengers? He was crew, not service. She wasn’t the rookie here. Following Sharmali to her seat, Meg drew the cleaning pod from her belt and passed it a few inches above the woman’s skin and the orange and purple fabric of the bikini top. The pod hummed and the stains lifted in a rain of reverse droplets, absorbed into the cleaner, leaving no trace.

Not bothering with thanks, Sharmali practically shoved Meg out of the way to return to where Red was patting soothing ointment on the second passenger’s face, having already bandaged the red mark on her arm. Moving past the seat where the first aid was occurring, Meg rolled her eyes. The mark was so tiny, it didn’t merit discussing, much less treatment. Or his holding the woman’s hand as she hyperventilated.

Irritation at the cozy scene flooded Meg’s nerves, making her voice a bit on the shrill side. “Don’t you have to return to the flight deck, Officer Thomsill?” Technically, she outranked him when it came to passenger care.

He gave her an enigmatic look, gathered the medical supplies, and headed for the galley behind her. “You’re welcome,” he said as she keyed the privacy screen between them and the passenger seats.

“Listen, I didn’t ask for your help and I don’t need it. You made me appear incompetent just now.” Grabbing the medkit from him, she stuffed it into the proper niche, slamming the compartment door.

Eyebrows raised, he rocked back on his heels. “That wasn’t my intention.”

“We’ll be landing in three minutes, folks.” Drewson’s voice on the com was authoritative. “The Falls is coming into range on your vidscreens. Officer Thomsill, you’re needed on the flight deck.”

“Saved by the pilot, or I’d be giving you a piece of my mind,” Meg said, shaking her finger at Red. “Don’t forget his synth coffee.”

Red reached past her to grab the carafe. Leaning close, invading her personal space, he said, “We’ll continue this conversation later.”

As he ascended in the one level gravlift to rejoin the pilot, she took a deep breath, pasted on her professional expression, and returned to the cabin to ensure the passengers were seated for landing and could perhaps be cajoled to spare a moment to glimpse the extremely expensive view.

“Took you long enough,” Drewson said as Red reached the cockpit.

“Here’s your synth,” he answered, more than a little annoyed. He suspected Drewson had set him up.

The pilot guffawed as he accepted the steaming drink. “Miss By-The-Book wouldn’t give you the real stuff, would she? Didn’t think she would.”

Red sank into his chair, rubbing the back of his neck. Yeah, his trip to the cabin had sure gone well. He’d managed to annoy Meg twice in ten minutes. Third time and he’d be a total write-off as far as she was concerned. Good intentions didn’t get him too far.
Need to up your game, Thomsill.
Meg was the only reason he’d signed on to this outfit. One glance at her, sitting at the next table in the Guild canteen on Sector Hub and he’d been a goner. Something about her sweet face and sparkling hazel eyes stuck in a man’s memory.
 

When he heard there was an opening on this ship for a Third Officer, he’d put his other opportunity on hold, entered his bid, and apparently the captain liked his experience. But this was next to the last stop on the charter and so far Meg barely gave him the time of day. If she spoke to him at all. The other officers and crew members said she kept to herself and never dated co-workers. Which was smart of her, but didn’t help him much. The Sectors was a galaxy-wide civilization, the cushy job on hold for him with the CLC Line wouldn’t wait forever, and he might never see her again if he let this opportunity fall through.

He’d never had much of a problem getting to know a woman before. Of course, none of them had mattered to him as much as Meg did. Desire to impress her made him self-conscious and fall over his own big feet.
 

Every time.

“Told you she’s impossible,” Drewson said. “I tried on our first cruise together, but she shut me down hard.”

“Well quit ‘helping’ me, okay? I can screw this up enough on my own.” Red hid his frustration under a light tone.

“Gonna miss you, rookie, if you don’t sign on with us again. It’s been a treat watching you try to make an impression on Meg. You should have gone after the Chief Stewardess. She’s been eyeing you, in case you haven’t gotten the message.”

Except he wasn’t the least bit interested in anyone but Meg. Red gave himself a mental shake. He could plan complex operations in the field, improvise on the fly under the worst conditions, and had the medals to prove it—why couldn’t he manage to establish some kind of less than antagonistic relationship with Meg Antille? See if there was any potential for something between them? Not for the first time, he berated himself for being an idiot, following a woman he’d only barely met across the Sector…but somehow a chance with Meg seemed worth it.

Drewson fiddled with the controls. “Check the atmospherics, would you? Make sure those storms are tracking out to sea.”

“Yes, sir.” Glad to be distracted, even for a moment, Red gave his attention to the instruments.

True to Meg’s prediction, Drewson took the shuttle in through the iridescent spray thrown off by the Rainbow Falls, and executed a smooth landing on the small landing pad next to the beach. As she triggered the door to allow the passengers to exit for their excursion today, Meg said, “We’ll be here for four hours, so you have plenty of time to stroll along the beach, enjoy the view, and relax. It’s safe to swim in the lake, but please, no further out than the marker buoys where the sonic barrier begins. The crew and I’ll be setting up your pavilion and amenities, and serving the requested lunch in about an hour.”

The music the Falls was famed for thundered outside. The water was effervescent, filled with bubbles of all the colors of the rainbow, having leached minerals from the planet’s surface as the river flowed toward the solitary ocean. The way the liquid poured through the cliff’s rocky channels and crevices produced constantly changing crystalline “music.” Meg loved it here. Dantaralon was one of her favorite spots. She stepped outside for a moment herself, before the work had to begin again. The air was warm, redolent with scent from the many flowering plants.