Pirate (LGBT - Sci-Fi - Romantic)

Chapter Twenty Three

Chapter Twenty Three 

Nicholas Mars hadn't seen Conn since he put him in a stealth pod and returned him to the Patrol a year ago. He had tried to move on, he really had, but Conn remained like a burr under his skin, always present, always distracting him from becoming too attached to anyone else. He had kept tabs on his activities over the past year as much as he could, wanting to see him again but always pulling back at the last moment. When he had heard about this trip, he couldn't contain himself any longer. 

And now Conn was here, alive, in person, actually in his cabin. His copper hair a little longer, wearing a civilian uniform of dark brown instead of his Patrol blue and looking even hotter than before, if that was possible. 

In fact, hot wasn't the word for it, he looked really mad. He was on his feet in an instant, getting into Mars' face, fuming. 

"What on Earth do you think you're doing?" he ground out between clenched teeth. "Any normal person would have sent me an invitation to meet somewhere for drinks, but no! You had to hijack my ship and fucking kidnap me!" 

He'd forgotten how cute Conn was when he was angry. "I've missed you," Mars said again. He tried to look more apologetic, "I was worried that any message from me would have been intercepted by the Patrol. Aren't you even a little bit glad to see me?" 

"What about my ship? My pilot? My passengers?" Connell was still furious. 

"All fine," soothed Mars. "I promise you no-one was hurt. In a little while you can send them a message, make sure they're okay and tell them that you're fine. You can say we made a mistake if you like, that you weren't the person we were looking for, and you'll be back in a few days." 

"Hmph!" snorted Connell. He glared at Mars, he didn't seem to have changed a bit. He'd grown his hair back to shoulder length so he could tie it in a pony tail if he wanted, and he had found new gold hoops to replace the ones Rice had confiscated. He was looking at him as if someone had given him the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. 

Connell found his anger dissipating like ice in summer. He'd never been able to stay mad at Nick for long. "Idiot!" he growled, a smile starting to break through despite himself. 

That was all the other man needed. Mars pulled him into a fierce hug, ignoring his attempts to disengage after a couple of hearty slaps on the back. "Can you stay with me for a few days?" he asked, still holding him tightly. 

"Do I have a choice?"  

"No," answered Mars with a smile. 

"I'm still straight," Connell felt the need to remind him. 

"Of course you are," said Mars agreeably. "I thought we could turn this couch into a bed for you. I would have given you your own cabin but we don't have one spare at the moment, and besides, I wanted to be close to you. I'll be next door."  

Connell supposed he could cope with that.  

He stepped back and looked at Mars. "So. You didn't die in the explosion then. I admit I suspected as much at the time, and then a few months later, I started hearing stories about a new pirate, a copy cat. Last I heard, Major Rice was tearing his hair out." 

Mars just grinned. 

"Were you able to get back any of your old crew?" 

Mars shook his head, serious for a moment. "No, most of them are still in prison. I thought I'd make a fresh start with a new ship, I've called it the Zivar by the way, and new men. It's taken awhile but I think I've finally got them round to my way of thinking, nothing like a healthy distribution of credits to convince people you know what you're doing." 

"And Nowak?" asked Connell. "Any news on him?" 

"Not so far. He's gone to ground but I've put the word out about him, so I expect someone will catch up with him eventually. No one likes a traitor, especially one who sold out his comrades for credits." 

He put an arm around Connell's shoulders. "Come on, I'll show you around the ship and you can send that message to your partner." His fingers tightened for a moment, digging into Connell almost painfully. "You can tell me all about her on the way."

For a moment Connell considered telling Mars that he and Katrina were lovers, just in case he still cherished any false hopes but in the end he told him the truth. "We're friends and business partners, that's all. And she has a kick ass girlfriend!" he added. 

"I'm glad, uh, glad things worked out for you when you left the Patrol," was all Nick said, but Connell was amused at the way he relaxed the tight grip he had on his shoulder. 

Mars gave him a short tour on their way to the bridge and Connell was completely unsurprised to discover the Zivar had been a top of the line Patrol ship in its previous life.  

He was relieved to hear from a still angry and concerned Katrina that everyone was fine on the Comet, a bit shaken but no-one had been injured apart from a couple of bruises when they hit the floor.  

"I've reported the assault to the Patrol on Aykut," she told him via the ship's console unit. "We've been cleared to continue to Bast for the moment, I can contact the Patrol again there if they want more details. Are you sure you're alright?" 

"I'm fine," Connell told her. "Ser Bastian was right. The pirates did attack us in error, it turns out I wasn't the person they were after so you don't have to worry about any ransom demands. They say they'll drop me off somewhere in a few days. Try not to worry, I'll see you soon." 

At a nod from Mars, the navigator cut the connection and sent the ship immediately into a short FTL jump to remove any possibility of being tracked by the transmission. Mars thought it might be a good opportunity to pay a visit to the far side of the star system for awhile, until he was ready to bring Conn back. They had enough supplies to last them a month so that was not a concern. 

Mars brought out the Mahjong set after dinner, as they sat chatting in his quarters, catching up on everything that had happened over the last year. 

"I haven't found any decent players since you," he commented, as he set up the pieces. "If you were wondering about your wristcom, I've put it in my safe until you leave, it's lined with lead." He smiled at Connell with a question in his eyes. "I don't suppose there's any chance you're carrying nanobots again?" 

Connell was about to give an offended denial when he caught himself. He hadn't known he'd had the last set. "Not as far as I know, but you'd better check. Take a blood test, just in case," he urged. 

A few minutes later, the ship's medic was able to set both their minds at rest. "I'm glad you thought of that," said Connell. "I'm going to be paranoid now, every time I go near someone from the Patrol." 

"It's the first thing I check for these days, for every new person I take on board," Mars commented. "Prisoners or crew." He looked seriously at Connell. "One of the reasons I wanted to see you, is that I'm thinking of moving my operations to another star system. It's getting too hot for me here. I'm pretty sure Rice is beginning to suspect I'm still alive and he's never going to let it go." 

Connell was aware of a sinking feeling in his stomach. Nick was leaving, just when he'd found him again? "Oh?" 

"Yes, maybe somewhere in the Almaaz system. They're discovering new planets out there, the Patrol's not yet fully established so there's plenty of opportunities." 

"I don't suppose you've ever thought of chucking in the whole pirate bit and turning legitimate?" Connell asked wryly. 

"Can't say the thought has ever crossed my mind," Mars grinned. "Why, are you offering to make an honest man out of me?" 

"Very funny! Can't you be serious for once? I don't want to read about your capture, or death somewhere, that's all." 

For a second Connell thought Mars was going to lean across and kiss him. He braced himself but the other man merely reached across to move one of his pieces. He wasn't disappointed, not even a bit, haha, that would be just too ridiculous. 

"May be one day I'll consider it," was all Mars said, smiling faintly.