To Love A Space Pirate (3 page)

Carden was sick to his stomach. He wasn’t going to have the pleasure of dying an honorable death! Instead, he was being forced to become an illegal outlaw. How had his life taken this drastic turn? All his life he worked hard and abided by the rules and where had that gotten him? Locked up in a space pirate’s cell for a month and threatened with the lives of his family! What choice did he have but to comply with the demands?

“What shall it be? I will give you the choice of working for me or rotting away in your cell on the brink of death but never succumbing to it.”

The one purple eye bore into his flesh as if it was a hot poker. “I agree.”

Those two words sealed his fate for the next ten years until he was able to break away from the highly sought after pirate. Bork, the only name Carden ever called his captor, was caught off guard the day he stole one of the male’s ships and started a new life for himself. For months he ran from the pursuing pirate, barely avoiding capture time and again. Life was incredibly hard for him for the first time in a long time after breaking away from Bork. He had to watch his every move and was always on the lookout for Bork’s goons. It took him several more years to amass his crew and ship to start his pirating empire.

Now, here he was with a female prisoner in his arms after raiding one of Tarwick’s ships. It wasn’t often he had the opportunity to take something from the company that left him for dead, and he relished the thought. He would finally get his revenge on the greedy people who didn’t care about the ones who risked their lives working for them.

He walked into sick bay and placed the human on the empty silver examination table. “Doc,” he called out. He heard the sound of a chair scrapping against the floor then heavy footsteps.

“Carden? What are you doing here?” Doc Faxon said as he came out of the small room he called his office.

“I brought you a patient,” Carden said as he looked down at the sleeping female.

Faxon approached the table and sucked in a sharp breath. “Where did you find a human?” He pulled out his Stethoscope and placed the round end inside the female’s jumpsuit.

“She was the only one onboard the ship we raided.” He stood back from the table with his arms folded.

Faxon looked up surprised. “Really? These human females get braver and braver.”

“My thoughts exactly. I want to know why she was in this sector alone, and that’s not even the best part. She works for Tarwick,” he said with a smudge of satisfaction.

“Tarwick?” Faxon smiled. The Doc knew Carden’s story and shared a similar experience. “Why would they send a lone female into this part of the galaxy? Are they that desperate for profit?” His fingers pressed into the pale flesh of the female’s neck.

“It wouldn’t surprise me a bit. They are a bunch of greedy motherfuckers and would send their mothers into the pit to face the enemy if they needed to.” Carden watched as the doc continued with his assessment. Even though the female worked for the one company in all the universe he despised, he hated to see any female injured. “How bad off is she?”

“Ummm, let me finish examining her first and I will let you know. Tell me, how was she injured? Did she put up a fight?” A smile played on the doctor’s lips.

Carden chuckled. “Unfortunately, no. I thought the ship was empty when we blew the cargo bay door. She was on the other side of it. I think she cracked her head pretty good judging from the blood in her mouth.”

“You blasted the door? Damn it Carden! How many times have I told you not to use those fucking explosives? Your men injure themselves enough without getting to blow stuff up!” Faxon shook his head. “One day you are going to blow yourself up instead of someone else. Get out of here for now and I will call you after I run some tests. Judging by the huge lump on the back of her head, she is going to be out of it for quite some time.”

Carden nodded. “Fine but I want her put into one of the cells after. She is my ticket to getting to Tarwick.”

“You going to ransom her?”

“Let’s just say I have some plans for her and Tarwick,” he said as he moved to leave the sick bay. “Call me once you have her secured in a cell.”

Faxon nodded without looking back at him. He left the small area and headed back to the disabled ship. He wanted to see what kind of cargo he had confiscated. Every little bit helped in his pursuit to take care of those at home. It was nearing the time when he would have to travel back to the place he called home and off-load everything he and his men had stolen. He wasn’t proud of what he did but with the price on his head, he was left with little option. The female might bring them some much-needed money but if Tarwick was anything like it used to be, he would have to find out who her family was and ransom her back to them.

Chapter 3

She hurt. Without even moving a muscle, Elizabeth knew she was in trouble. Her head felt as if someone was pounding on it was a sledgehammer. It even hurt to roll her eyes! She wished the pain would subside enough for her to get up because she needed to hide! They would find her soon as they came through the door. She listened closely for any sounds coming from the other side of the cargo bay door, but all was quiet.

With great effort, she rolled to her side and cracked open one eye. To her utter horror, she realized she was no longer in the cargo hold. For that fact, she wasn’t even on her ship! Her other eye opened slowly and joined the other one in determining where she was. Nope, definitely not on her ship! She was laying on a bed of some sort in a tiny room facing what looked like a door made of laser lights.

Beams of bright blue light crisscrossed the door’s threshold, barring any chance of escape; not that she could get up at the current moment. Each breath she drew burned. What the hell happened to her? She searched her memory and couldn’t figure it out. And, how had she come to be inside this cell? She determined it was a cell after seeing the glowing beams.

Her eyes blinked slowly as she struggled to remain awake. She needed to get out of here somehow and find out where her ship was taken. Tarwick was going to be pissed enough with her for having taken that short cut. God help her if she lost the cargo! But, she was too tired to move. Maybe a few more minutes and a quick nap would give her enough energy to get up. She let her eyes close again as she tried to breathe shallowly.

When she awoke next, a man was sitting next to her bed looking at the tablet he was holding. He didn’t notice she was awake at first until he looked up from his tablet.

“Hello there,” he said with a smile. “I am Doc Faxon. How do you feel?”

Lizzy tried to move her lips, but it felt like her tongue was stuck to the roof of her mouth. She swallowed several times before she could finally speak. “I feel horrible. What happened to me?”

“Let’s say you were in a bit of an accident. What is your name?”

Whoever he was, he had a beautiful smile. A thick strand of dark brown hair fell forward over his eye as he looked down at her. “Elizabeth,” she managed to croak out. “Can I have something to drink?” The effort to speak was becoming too much.

“Forgive me,” he said.

Her eyes followed him as stood up and moved to the small sink she hadn’t noticed the last time she was awake. He filled a small white cup with water and returned to his seat next to her. “Here you are. Let me help you.”

He helped to hold up her head as she greedily consumed the delicious liquid. It coursed down her parched throat and hit her empty stomach.

“Had enough?” The cup hovered near her lips if she wanted more but she nodded her head in response.

“Thank you,” she mumbled as she let her head fall back down to the pillow.

“Do you remember what happened,” he asked her.

“The last thing I remember was hearing someone trying to open the cargo door. Next thing I know I wake up in here feeling like crap.” Literally. She had never felt so horrible in all her life.

“You are the prisoner of one Carden “Scar Face” Swien, Captain of the Purgatory, and I am your friendly doctor, Faxon.”

“Prisoner? But why?”

Everything came flooding back. Every last detail of what happened hit her all at once and overwhelmed her senses. She had been trying to hide from whoever was forcing their way into her disabled ship! The explosion! They blasted the door open to gain access to the cargo she had been transporting for Tarwick. Now, she was a prisoner to some guy named Scar Face! Could things get any worse for her?

“The captain has plans on ransoming you back to the company you work for. I guess he thinks you are worth something. Are you?” The Doctor’s eyebrows rose up slightly as he waited for her answer. “That’s okay. You don’t have to tell me but be prepared for Carden to come in here and get the answers he wants. I will try to hold him off as long as I can, but I can’t promise much more than that.”

Fear like no other struck her. Ransom? Would Tarwick pay? Surely they would! They would never leave one of their employees to fend for themselves! They were a good company to be part of, and she wished now she wouldn’t have broken one of their cardinal rules. Hopefully, once she was returned to Keplar 1, she would be able to explain what happened and be able to keep her job. She had gotten herself into this bind on her own and would have to pay the price, but, perhaps, the company would be lenient on her considering she was being held prisoner.

“Is my prisoner awake?”

A deep voice caused her to jump. She hissed as a sharp pain radiated throughout her head and down her spine. She had to squeeze her eyes shut until the sudden paralyzing pain slowly faded away.

“Carden, she is not ready to be questioned yet. Give her a few days,” Faxon urged.

“I will handle the prisoner as I see fit, Doctor Faxon. If you would, please excuse us. I have some questions to ask of this human.” The look on Carden’s face told her everything she needed to know.

“Yes, sir Captain.” Faxon stood up. “I will be back later to check on you and give you your pain medicine.” He nodded at her then spun on his heel and walked out of the cell.

Elizabeth watched the doctor leave and instantly wished he would return. As soon as the man passed through the door, the beams flickered to life locking her inside with Scar Face.

She got a better look at him as he sauntered over to her bedside and kicked the chair closer to her. She resisted the urge to gasp when she saw the massive scar running down the side of his face. The healed wound ran from top of his eyebrow down over his eye to his cheek to curve slightly onto his chin. Whoever inflicted this injury must have had a vendetta against Carden.

“What is your name human,” he demanded of her.

“Elizabeth. Elizabeth Riley,” she whispered.

“Well, Elizabeth Riley, you are my prisoner if you don’t already know this.” He waited for her to acknowledge his statement. When she nodded, he continued. “You work for Tarwick Industries, do you not?”

Again she nodded. Where was this conversation going? She was a nobody to the company and held little power to do or say anything to help him.

“I have plans on ransoming you back to your wretched employer but,” he paused for a few seconds, “I do not think they will respond to my demands.”

“Why? They should want their employee back.” He was wrong! Tarwick would get her released as soon as he set his demands.

His laugh chilled her to the very bone. “Are you that naïve to think Tarwick would want a tiny human like you back? No, do not fool yourself!”

Lizzy stared up into gray eyes. What should she say? Surely he was wrong! “No, what you say is not true. Tarwick is an excellent company and values each and every one of their employees. They will meet whatever demands you send them.”

“Are you sure, little human?” He was mocking her. He looked away from her and stared at the blank wall over her bed.

She swallowed nervously as she waited for him to continue with his interrogation. He was a very imposing man and probably enticed fear into many of his prisoners, but she refused to let him scare her. He would not break down her defenses and get her to cry! She was much stronger than that. Oh, she was positive he would try to break her, but she needed to remain strong for as long as she could so once she was free, she could give an accurate description of this pirate and everyone else on board.

“I am positive my company will come for me and you, sir, will see the inside of a prison cell for a very long time.” Her anger was welling up inside her, and it hurt her head. Why was he picking a fight with her? She wished he would go away and leave her alone until he received word from Tarwick.

Those startling eyes swung back to her. A cruel smile crossed his face as he studied her for some time before speaking again. “I guess we will find out. Won’t we?” He stood up and moved the chair back against the cell wall. “I would advise you to rest for now. I will have more questions for you later.”

“I want to know how long are you planning on keeping me your prisoner,” she asked rapidly.

“For as long as I need to.”

“But…what happens to me if they do not pay?” The thought of Tarwick not paying for her release entered her mind. The man was filling her with doubt with the way he seemed to know how Tarwick would react to his demand.

“We will come to that decision if it arises. Rest well, little human. Open the cell,” he shouted to some unseen guard. The blue beams faded away instantly and reappeared as soon as Captain Carden was clear of the door frame.

Lizzy relaxed against the softness of her pillow. Her first confrontation with a space pirate had been stressful. If she hadn’t had been in such a helpless position, she would have put up more of a fight. She would have demanded she be allowed to contact her family or Tarwick at the very least. But, her head was splitting, and it still hurt to breathe. She wished the doctor would come back and give her some pain medicine. It would be a blessed thing for her to sleep her captivity away!

As she closed her eyes, she pictured the captain. The air around him demanded obedience. His size alone would make a grown human man cringe in fear. From where she lay on her bed, she could see he had to be nearly seven feet tall. His dark brown hair was cut short in the back but swooped down over his forehead. His light gray eyes immediately told her she wasn’t dealing with a human, but what was he then? Even though she had been part of Tarwick for some time now, she met very few alien races so far. Most of the time during a delivery she would remain on the ship and let her head pilot deal with the customer. But, this flight she had been on her own and would have had to handle everything.

Carden Swien looked remarkably like a human, but there were some differences she could see immediately. The eyes were a dead giveaway being light gray and slightly diamond shaped. Unless he were just exceptionally tall, his height would give him away too. Most humans of that size looked awkward but not him. He was perfectly balanced in every way. Not to mention the muscles that strained against his clothes every time he leaned in close to her. The scar running down his face marred what would have been a beautiful piece of artwork. But, still, he was ruggedly handsome in a pirate sort of way! She wondered how he got the horrible scar.

Girl! You need to stop thinking about him in that way! He kidnaped you for crying out loud and plans on ransoming you back if he can
her inner self screamed at her.

If he can? What the hell would happen to her if Tarwick refused? She would have to get the captain to contact her father so she could gain her release that way. Her father would do anything to have her returned safe and sound. She was in no position to demand anything, but the next time she saw the good captain, she would do just that!

She grew tired very quickly with her conversation. The best thing she could do was sleep and wait to hear from Tarwick. The doctor should return shortly, and she would ask him for something for the persistent pain pounding in her head. For now, she would close her eyes and hope sleep would take over.

~~~~~~~~

“I want her monitored at all times,” Carden said to the guard assigned to the cell unit. “Call for the doc if you see her in any distress, got it?”

“Yes, captain.”

Carden glanced at the monitor one last time before he headed back to the cargo hold. He wanted to make sure all the supplies taken off the Tarwick ship were secured and entered into the inventory.

The ship was flying a bit slower because of the heavy load they were carrying. It was time to go home and offload the bounty. They had been gone far too long this go around, and he knew his men needed some time off. The trek to his small hideout would take two to three days depending on the ship’s speed. He wouldn’t be able to push the engines too hard considering the weight they were carrying. His vessel was old and constantly needed repairs, so he didn’t want to take the risk of blowing out an engine while they were so far out and heavy with a good payload.

The people he supported on his hideout depended on him and his crew. Most were the families of his men, but there were some he had found on his runs who needed a place to call home. Many were misfits and agreed to work for him knowing who and what he was. At any given moment, the Galactic Council could find his location and come in and wipe him out. Hopefully, the tiny moon they lived on was far enough away and of little interest to the authorities. His primary concern would be for his people and what would happen to them. He was confident they would be able to survive for several years on the moon if, by some chance, he was captured while out on a run. He had enough of a stockpile of supplies to get them all through if it happened but if the moon was invaded, there was little he could do to stop it.

During his years as a space pirate, he only moved his hideout once. The Galactic Council had gotten wind of the place he was attempting to purchase. Unbeknownst to him, someone recognized him and alerted the local police who, in turn, informed the Council. He barely had enough time to escape with his men and ship before the raid started. It had taken months before he found them a new place he was confident enough with to call home. Six years now they called Sheannor home.