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Tweak says, "Weiss Kreuz is flowershop love"

tartwithaheart (tartwithaheart) wrote in huria,
@ 2009-06-18 00:13:00

Entry tags:

eli gray, eppie cardiff

Time: Afternoon
Place: Eavesdown Docks, near the Huria's loading bay
Cast: Eppie and...whomever should happen to wander up!

It was an absolutely lovely day. This was due to several things, none of which Eppie Cardiff had any control over - that made the day all the brighter. Eppie thought to herself, fanning herself in the heat and sipping at gin, that it was all very well to arrange things pleasingly; this was of course the sensible thing to do if one wanted to end up satisfied. Yet how much nicer somehow when things just naturally sort-of...fell that way? The sun was bright and clear in the sky, there were steady drafts of fresh, clean air that swept down the street from time to time, fluttering skirts and tumbling the litter along gaily. There were people coming and going, an endless parade of colour, scent, and cheerful uproar. Children run about, shouting and laughing, and there were blushing girls and weary old men, every sort, all for her amusement. There was even a faint whiff of curry floating by, which made the plate of papadums in Eppie's lap taste all the better (she'd gotten them for a kiss). And the best, the best thing about Persephone was that it was far, far away from the glorified refilling station of a moon that the Huria had whisked her away from a week before. In all this sensual glory, the only thing Eppie had anything to do with was that she was wearing her second-favourite dress. The rest all just...worked out.

She sat, watched people go by, and once in a while she saw someone interesting and wished they'd stop and talk to her. The gin was cold and burnt her throat, and everything was beautiful.

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eli_gray
2009-06-18 03:47 pm UTC (link)

Eli wove his way in and out of the crowd of people, careful not to bump anyone with the suitcases he carried in each hand or the duffle slung over his shoulder. His green-brown gaze flicked everywhere, keeping an eye on everyone and everything he could. He saw no one he knew, but more importantly, he didn't spot any Alliance goons strutting about self-importantly. None of the stealthier ones in plain clothes either, as far as he could tell; the Alliance sometimes put them on docks to watch for people of a larcenous or murderous bent.

Not me, I'm no one special, just a fine, upstanding citizen taking transport back home, halfway across the 'verse. Nothing to see, moving right along.

Eli turned onto the main docks. The sun spread warmth across his shoulders and it might've been unpleasantly hot in his black coat if there hadn't been a breeze to sift through his hair and finger over the back of his neck. Here it was a little noisier, people bustling around, the food kiosks doing a fair business. The scents were tempting, and Eli was glad he'd already eaten.

And there was the Huria, loading ramp down, waiting. Jonah had said they were taking off today, but hadn't really mentioned a time, so Eli had gone back to his quarters and packed up everything. Not much sense paying for a fare and then missing it, and Eli had no doubts that they'd take off without him if he didn't arrive on time.

Eli paused at the bottom of the ramp. A young lady sat outside in the shade of a parasol, watching the crowded streets, as if everything had been designed for her amusement and interest. She was a pretty little thing, tiny waist that only corseting provided set off by long, richly-colored voluminous skirts and a neckline meant to make a man look and long for the softness beneath the cloth. She had big bluish eyes, a little painted mouth and a mass of reddish hair. Very nice. If she was a fellow passenger, then she'd brighten up the drabness of the trip.

He stepped up onto the ramp, and felt her attention snap to him. He stopped halfway up, and smiled.

"Good afternoon," he said pleasantly. "You look like a young lady immensely pleased with the course of the day so far."

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tartwithaheart
2009-06-19 11:23 pm UTC (link)

Eppie's attention had been drawn toward the striking man, and her mouth quirked into a little smile, her fan pausing in it's colourful flutters. He was tall and a bit thin, and older than her, he had plenty of experience in his eyes. Yet he had laugh-lines, too, his mouth a tad sardonic, and there was that slightly awkward air that suggested some...well, let that wait. Eppie laughed at herself internally at her eagerness to immediately dissect this person - was the day so dull? She watched him, knowing that the moment she opened her mouth she'd have something else to go by. She fanned a bit faster, casting up her eyes.

"Do I? Why, that I am, sirrah." a nod of greeting. "Can a body ask fer a better day? S'lovely, innit?"

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eli_gray
2009-06-19 11:43 pm UTC (link)

He might've guessed from her style of dress, but her accent, a bold, cheerful English cockney, gave her away as a native of Dyton.

"It is, yes." Eli slanted a glance upward to the pale turquoise sky, then looked back at her. She looked utterly relaxed, a plate on her lap, a glass at her side. "A good day for an alfresco lunch, and the crowd provides ample entertainment. At least I've always found people infinitely interesting."

He walked further up the ramp, and set down his suitcases. "I assume that you're a passenger aboard the Huria? I've booked passage as well. Eli Gray."

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tartwithaheart
2009-06-20 12:42 am UTC (link)

The girl laughed and tossed her coppery head, ruddy cheeks dimpled as she grinned.

"Master Grey, oh my." She began to set her things aside for a moment, her ingrained manners pushing her up out of the chair and extending her small, freckled hand to the gentleman. "An' lissen to 'im talk! My, ain't 'e fancy, too fancy fer this poor dim 'ead." She tipped her round face up to see him, teasing, but in a friendly sort of way. "Miss Cardiff, and I am stowin' 'ere, aye.

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eli_gray
2009-06-20 12:55 am UTC (link)

She unfolded from her chair with a smooth grace. She really was tiny; he was at least a foot taller than she was. Her hand was small and slim and cool in his.

He liked that she wasn't afraid to tease him, liked the little smile that lurked in one corner of her mouth as she did.

"I'm glad to meet you, Miss Cardiff," he replied. She didn't offer her given name, and he didn't press for it. If she wanted him to call her by it, she would've given it. "Are you new to the ship, or have you been traveling with them for a while?"

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tartwithaheart
2009-06-20 11:20 am UTC (link)

Eppie tipped her head in thought, a carefully-placed curl falling to brush her cheek. He was polite, and didn't press her overmuch. That was good...she liked men that took what one gave them. She noticed that he was still holding her hand, but besides a barely imperceptible squeeze of his longer fingers (never hurt to make nice, after all) gave no sign.

"Oh, I'd say...li'le less than a fortnight, almost? I kept a bit t'meself, though." She smiled, and her eyes crinkled up in honest pleasure, even as they squinted into the bright sunlight. "I can see that'll 'ave to change."

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eli_gray
2009-06-20 01:28 pm UTC (link)

Eli laughed. "I believe that's the most complimentary thing anyone's said to me in months. Thank you. I suspect that your company will brighten up a long, drab journey."

He slid his hand from hers. He'd noticed the little squeeze she'd given it. That could prove interesting later; he'd see how things played out. He liked to see developing patterns, see the lay of the land, so to speak, before committing to a course of action. Reaching up, he shifted the strap on his duffle bag to a more comfortable position.

Within the shadowy hold was the neatly-stacked and well-secured cargo, and he had a momentary larcenous itch, quickly squashed. Foolish in the extreme to try and rob a ship he'd be stuck on for a while. Most likely it wasn't anything that would earn him a profit worth the risk, anyway.

"Jonah had told me we'd be leaving today. I would've expected a bit more activity, but perhaps they're already already loaded everything and are waiting for passengers to make their way in."

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tartwithaheart
2009-06-20 03:39 pm UTC (link)

"I s'pose so. You wantin' a tour?" Eppie watched Eli's eyes scan the cargo area, and she wasn't sure what gave her that little start. He was polite, urbane, fancy-talking. That cool, exacting look-over that he gave the place, however, was something she knew. Something she knew so well that she'd grown up recognising it the way most children recognised the familiar tread of their parent upon the stair. She herself often used her fan and a toss of the head to blur her own tell, but he...he was subtle enough that she figured he didn't really have to.

The sly dog was casing the place, she'd bet her best bonnet on it.

Then again...might she just be seeing what she knew? Eppie knew all too well that rushing into certainty was a mistake that could get a girl's throat cut faster than she could say 'please, Sir'. She sternly told herself to wait. Wait, and talk to the man, and find out more. That wouldn't be hard - he seemed a rum sort, after all, and she wasn't against making new friends. ...especially new friends that could afford the sort of suit he was wearing.

She tossed a look back at her plate and glass left behind, and hesitated.
"Or...when yer done stowin' yer dross, may'ap ye'd like to come out and 'ave a sit wiv me, yeah?" A smile, the sort that half-promises. "I shouldn't mind it, nowt one bit."

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eli_gray
2009-06-20 06:39 pm UTC (link)

That coy half-tilt of the head, the look up at him from beneath her lashes, the inviting smile that promised much if he wanted--ah. Miss Cardiff was a working girl. Fancier and finer than most; her dress was beautiful and clearly not out of some cheap shop window, her skin was creamy and smooth, her teeth white and perfect.

Unlike many, Eli had absolutely nothing against whores, men or women who were simply using the tools granted them by nature. He'd grown up with them, both as family and friends. Now he regarded them as professionals and if they did their jobs well, they deserved his respect and patronage. It wasn't as if he could look down his considerable nose at them; he'd done his fair share of selling himself for the sake of the job at the moment and hadn't grieved about it in the least.

"How could I resist such an offer?" he asked, tipping his head and looking down at her. "I'd be very foolish to turn down the chance to sit in the sunshine with a beautiful woman. And I've never considered myself a stupid man."

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tartwithaheart
2009-06-20 08:24 pm UTC (link)

Her laugh bubbled bright as champagne from those prettily painted lips, and Eppie sat herself back down, tucking her feet carefully under her and taking her gin up again.

"No, ye don't sound one pinch a stupid man, Mister Grey." she laughed. "I'll look ter see ye back, then. I'll be 'ere, an' you should get lost."

Watching him walk up into the darkness and disappear, Eppie reflected on that short conversation. He may be - or had been - a thief, or perhaps a saboteur. That last was unlikely - she'd chosen the Huria specifically because it was unremarkable (and for the pliability of it's Second-in-command, of course). What was he looking for? Was he running his take? Was he...

All this thought was entertaining, but not so very urgent that the place to food at Eppie's side could go neglected. With a smile she moved the plate back to her lap, eating her papadums with obvious pleasure. Meanwhile, her brain clicked and clacked away, inspecting her conversation with the new fellow from all angles.

Colour to the drab journey, indeed.

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eli_gray
2009-06-20 10:05 pm UTC (link)

Eli nodded to her, picked up his bags, and entered the Huria. After the brightness of outside, the corridors seemed dim and dark; only the top-of-the-line ships ran lights at full power. Other ships were more conservative.

He made his way to his cabin. It was no bigger or smaller than the others he'd seen, the walls a serviceable plain cream, everything built in and able to be tucked away--facilities, desk, storage. The decking was a plain dark grey, mostly covered by tatami mats. His bed, slightly larger than a single, had been tucked in the corner on a platform with storage drawers, neatly made, linens and blankets plain white and brown. He liked fine sheets and covers, but he'd certainly slept in far worse before. It would do.

Eli put his luggage on the bed. He stripped out of his long coat and rolled his sleeves halfway to his elbows, loosened his tie and collar in deference to the warmth. Although he didn't go armed with gunbelt encircling his waist, holster strapped to his thigh, he certainly wasn't unarmed. He never was completely unarmed, not ever.

He slid closed the door behind him and made his way back to the loading ramp, nodding at a couple of crew members as they passed, busy. There were a rack of folding chairs, presumably for the use of the crew and guests as Miss Cardiff had one, and he took another to sit in.

She sat beneath her parasol again, eating papadums from the plate in her lap and sipping something from a glass. Eli unfolded the chair beside her and sat, angling so that he had his back to the hull of the Huria. He stretched out his long legs and raked a hand through his thick hair.

"If you've been aboard the Huria two weeks, then I'll wager you've already charmed all the secrets from the crew. So I hope you'll be kind and steer me around people or subjects I should be wary of, yes?"

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tartwithaheart
2009-06-21 04:47 pm UTC (link)

Eppie found herself giving that same charming, indulgent smile at the man as he sat down, but at his question her thoughts went spinning. What did he know? Had she come off as anything but a bright, cheerful young woman? No, not a chance. This must be how regular sort of folk talked to one another, it had to be. She was learning how 'civvies' behaved, but it was slow going. She laughed, politely covering her mouth with her hand, and gave a shake of her head that let the light glint off her curls.

"I would be as kind as I ought, Mister Grey, if I 'ad aught t'tell you. I fink you over-estimate my charm, at least!" A self-deprecating laugh, of course, was the first lesson charm-school gave a girl. "S'truth I know no secrets, an' no sore points. The cap'n seems a good sort, if a bit 'ard-tied. Her right 'and likewise, an upstandin' man."
She enjoyed an internal smirk at that: Yes, Jonah was upstanding, honourable, and good. So much so, in fact, that she hadn't even needed to unlace to win her place aboard his vessel.

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eli_gray
2009-06-21 07:08 pm UTC (link)

"I think you underestimate your own charm, Miss Cardiff," Eli replied. "But I'll take your word for the wholesome and upstanding natures of crew and fellow passengers. It should be refreshing after dealing with business people, who tend to be somewhat less wholesome or upstanding."

Eli dipped into his vest pocket and came out with a bright coin. He had big hands with long fingers, and he spun the coin, flipping it over and over again over the tops of his fingers. It looked like idle play, but there was a reason; he did it to keep his hands nimble.

"Do you have a destination in mind, or are you simply out taking a look at the wide 'verse?"

If she were working, traveling around could be profitable--a wider client base and never long enough in any one place to incur complications.

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tartwithaheart
2009-06-23 04:32 pm UTC (link)

Underestimating herself, of course, was exactly the impression Eppie wanted to give. She knew who Miss Cardiff ought to be in the eyes of her fellow passengers: a charming, if someone naive girl, a bit sheltered, a bit dim; but good-hearted for all that. The sort of damsel every woman wanted to trade gossip with, and every fellow wanted to protect. Luckily, she was close enough to that archetype that it was hardly acting, most of the time.

As good as she was, even Eppie couldn't hide the gleam in her eye at seeing the flashing bright coin before her eyes. It caught the sun, keeping her attention as it glittered and spun in Eli's fingers. She remembered the first time she'd been given a coin of her very own. She answered, forcing her eyes away, squinting up into the sun.

"Ah, am I really that obvious? I admit, sir, that I 'aven't the faintest where I'm goin'. The...the thought was jus...t'ave a bit've adventure, see..." a shy giggle. "Does that make me sound awfully daft?"

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eli_gray
2009-06-23 07:36 pm UTC (link)

Daft? Most unlikely. Still, that little giggle would've been charming had he not been suspicious of everyone and everything. He allowed himself to smile in return.

"Oh, I think not," Eli said easily, and switched the coin to the other hand. "That would make me daft as well, then, because I've been out seeing the wide 'verse myself. I've had a quiet, boring life so far, and thought a bit of adventure wouldn't go amiss before I got too old to appreciate it. I've been to several of the core planets, and thought I'd see a few of the border worlds." He gave a fluid shrug. "I've been on Greenleaf a very long time."

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	tartwithaheart 2009-06-27 03:06 pm UTC (link)
	"I wish I'd seen the Core worlds, as you 'ave." Eppie became suddenly quiet, almost...wistful. It was true enough; she had strong pride in her home colony, but there was an opulence and grace - and even more, a hypocrisy - about the Core planets that enchanted her. "Ah, but I 'ardly believe ye've 'ad a boring life. A posh gent such'as yerself! Hardly!" (Reply to this) (Parent)

eli_gray
2009-06-27 04:14 pm UTC (link)

Eli switched the coin to his left hand and watched the flash of gold as he flipped it from forefinger to little finger and back again. "Ah, but I'm not so posh, Miss Cardiff," he denied gently. "I'm a working man, same as any other. Were I indeed wealthy, I'd be sitting on a top-of-the-line cruiser, and be denied your delightful company."

He smiled at her. "I've lived a quiet life, managing numbers and accounts for a large medical company. There's not much excitement in that, honestly. I thought that I should take myself off for a bit of exploring before my backside became rooted to my office chair."

He flipped the coin, noted how her blue eyes followed the flash, childlike, before her sophistication smoothed it away. "Londinium was a wonder, Osiris was sophisticated and fine, but Sihnon was my favorite. Like a ruby jewel in space. And the capitol city was beautiful, like an ocean of light. I loved Sihnon the best. It was opulent, like the seraglio of a sultan from ancient times in Earth-that-was."

And that was the truth. He'd spent time wallowing in the utter decadent luxury of it, in cool silks and warm flesh, in crisp wines and fine foods. It had been a place for dalliances with courtesans and Companions, for making profitable deals with the unscrupulous. Eventually, he'd make his way back there; not for a while, as friends of Alemao's lived on Sihnon, and Eli would very much like to remain as intact as possible. With the ease of years of compartmentalizing, he tucked away how he'd found Linnea, and how he'd left Alemao. Those were thoughts for another time.

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tartwithaheart
2009-06-27 09:58 pm UTC (link)

Eppie sighed at his words. She didn't have a soul filled with poetry like some, but the appreciation for art and beauty was in her somewhere, even if she'd never been able to develop it into more than a lust for pretty gowns and perfect decorations. She got a faraway, wistful look, fanning herself.

"Ah, well...I dinnae wot a sera...serag...wot that thing is, but it sounds luvley. Like a posh den in West Lime'ouse I were at once, wiv red curtains an' pillows scattered all about..." her voice trailed off, and if there were memories of that opium den and it's sensual delights, she put them aside. There had been a flash in his eye, but nothing clear enough to attribute to any particular emotion.

"Ah, sir, I ent the type fer places like that, I don't think. Yet I can't 'elp but long fer 'em, a bit. Still, tain't no way t'elp a bit o' dreamin', is there?" She gave a smile, her eyes watching the coin. "You...you know 'ow t'keep figures, then?"

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eli_gray
2009-06-27 11:41 pm UTC (link)

"I've read many, many old stories from Earth-that-was," Eli said reflectively. And that was true; he was a voracious reader, devouring everything he could find. More than once he'd demanded books as part of a payment for a job. "A seraglio is a place where a sultan, who was like a king of old Earth, kept his lovely harem of pleasure ladies. It was filled with fine silks and soft pillows and fragrant incense, with pitchers of wine and trays of sweets and all manners of pleasurable things. It was meant to be a showcase for the beauty of the ladies living there. And if it's not too forward of me to say so, you, Miss Cardiff, would not be out of place there."

He caught her hand, pressed the gold coin into her palm, and gently curled her fingers closed around it. "And there's nothing wrong with a bit of dreaming."

Eli folded his hands neatly together and tipped his head back into the warm sun. "I know how to keep figures, yes," he replied. "If I were an unscrupulous sort, I could make them say whatever I wished." He rolled his head to open his eyes and look at her.

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tartwithaheart
2009-06-28 12:19 pm UTC (link)

Eppie blinked, for just a moment caught a little at odds as her mind spun. A coin. A bright, shining coin pressed into her palm. She felt the hard edges of it though the fine cloth of her glove, and something in her crowed in glee. It was hardly the best 'gift' she'd ever been given, but it was half as much as she made in a night. The true meaning of his pressing that coin in her palm - and his words about the numbers - were not lost on the girl - very far from it. The implications spun in her mind, but she forced her lips to move, replying to his more recent statement. The rest...could wait until evening.

"I..." she hesitated, as if his kind gesture had flustered her a bit - which, in truth, it had. "I never learned me 'ow t'manage figures." she whispered, almost in a sort of daze. "I should think the man who could give a girl a' bit o' learnin'....well. She'd be..." a soft intake of breath. "Properly grateful."

She wouldn't reply to his gesture, or the comment about her being fit for a Sultan's harem. It flattered her, something inside her preened. Yet there were things to considered: how to respond to the fact that he'd just bought her while still maintaining plausible deniability. How to discern whether he was in earnest. Most of all, deciding whether the chance at a steady client was worth the complication of being stuck on the same ship as said client. And then he let his head swivel lazily about, giving her that look, and she drew in her breath again. Oh, that look. That knowing, wanting look. She pulled her hand away, slipping the coin carefully into her glove. Yes.

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eli_gray
2009-06-29 01:53 am UTC (link)

Properly grateful.

Oh, yes. Eli had no doubt that she could be most accommodating. And that she would be quite talented. She had a sweet little body buried beneath those voluminous skirts, that tight-laced corset. The swell of creamy breasts above the low neckline of her bodice was very, very pretty sight.

Delicate pink color chased across her cheeks, there and gone so quickly he would've missed it had he not been watching her. He had her, definitely. He was in no hurry to make his claim, however; he was a very patient man. The right time would come along when it did, and at any rate, anticipation held a particular pleasure of its own.

He watched her slip the coin into her glove, and the corner of his mouth tipped up. He turned his attention back to the wisps of clouds feathering across the turquoise sky, the wheeling arcs of birds in flight.

"We'll be in space a long time," he said. "A mind gets bored with reading or vids or idle chatter after a while. I'd be glad to teach you what I know. I have a feeling you've quite the clever mind behind those pretty blue eyes, Miss Cardiff."

It was a claim he could back up; for a sting, he'd spent a few months living the life he now wore as camouflage. He'd found playing with numbers interesting, and in the end, very profitable. Though not interesting enough or profitable enough for him to walk a straighter path than he did now.

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tartwithaheart
2009-06-29 12:29 pm UTC (link)

The temptation to simply stare at the man was very strong. What little polish Eppie had managed to pick up may have schooled her outward responses, but it had done nothing to change her inner landscape. She was still bold as brass, and she still had her shining brass ankle cuffs tucked away somewhere to prove it. She wanted to ask him if he meant it, she wanted desperately to slip back into the comforting cadences of Dyton tongue - that mix of cant and rhyming slang that was - if she were honest - truly her first language. Ah, but this was a more subtle sort of game, even if it was at heart the same game. One simply didn't start reading the bones at this stage. Eppie repeated to herself the catechism she'd been taught as a child: Speak first the Golden Wings, then use the Silver Tongue. Next comes Brass Tacks, and then Quicksilver Dance, and, finally (if needed), the Iron Kiss. Always in order, never switched around. She'd grown up on stories told of the fates that befell those who forgot the nursery rhyme. Her eyes lifted to his, with a knowing her blushing cheeks instantly belied.

"Ah, I wish t'were so, Sir. I suspec' you flatter me! Lord knows I'm a simple sort've girl, quite silly an' fond, I know it - and yet..." she smiled then, and felt warmth bloom in her belly. "Yet...seems th' angels did gift me wiv a mind that takes a lesson well, and I should think meself sa'isfied wiv that."

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eli_gray
2009-06-30 01:19 pm UTC (link)

Eli had no belief in any sort of higher power, good nor evil; a man made his own fortune, not imaginary gods or fate.

"A clever mind open to learning is a gift indeed," he said. "It's a waste to not take advantage of learning something new when offered. You never know when a bit of knowledge will come in handy."

Right now Miss Cardiff was as pretty as the gold coin he'd given her, but time stopped for no one, and eye-catching beauty eventually faded. "Whenever you wish, we can begin your lessons. I look forward to spending time in your company."

And then later, at his choice, he'd collect what he'd paid for. What she'd offered in exchange for lessons. If she wanted to play the sweet, flirty ingenue for others--and she did it very well so she must have something of that still within her--that was fine with him. He'd do nothing to make anyone else think anything otherwise. They both had roles to play for whatever length of time they'd be on the Huria, and if she learned anything of him, he'd make certain that she kept it to herself as well.

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tartwithaheart
2009-07-01 07:31 pm UTC (link)

Eppie grinned at that, finally feeling a bit less worked up. It was settled, then. It wasn't a bad deal, either: he was young, and not bad to look at, not one bit. She might even get herself a bit of fun out of the arrangement; he was right about space travel getting more than a bit tiresome.

She finished her food, finally standing and drinking back the last of the oily gin. A cheeky smile, and she set her hand on her hips.

"Well, 'ow about t'night? After supper. You get settled in, an' I'll get a siesta, and..." a look toward the ship that would be her hope for the foreseeable future, and she looked back at him.

"I suspec' I may grow fond ayer comp'ny, as well."

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eli_gray
2009-07-01 09:51 pm UTC (link)

Eli stood when she did; he'd learned that good manners often covered a multitude of sins, could make others overlook minor inconsistencies in behavior.

"As you wish, Miss Cardiff. I'll collect suitable materials and meet you in the common room after supper, then."

He smiled and caught her hand, bringing it up to press her knuckles to his lips. Her fine gloves smelled of some sort of perfume, a nice touch. Releasing her, he picked up and folded both chairs. There was no point in not taking hers at the same time. With a little nod he strode up the ramp and replaced them in the proper storage slot.

As he made his way to his assigned cabin to unpack and settle in, he hummed under his breath. Not a bad bit of work; for sharp observation and a handful of pretty words, he'd made certain that he wouldn't be bored on the journey. When Miss Cardiff left the Huria, she'd be leaving well-compensated; knowledge was power. And if she pleased him, she'd be likely to have a stash of coin as well, because he believed in paying generously for services well-done in good faith. But those who tried to cheat him--well, there were none left who could tell of it.

He slid open the shoji screen door to his cabin and frowned at the bareness of it. Perhaps a trip into town was in order after he unpacked. This would be his home for the next bit of time, so he might as well be relatively comfortable. He remembered Linnea laughing at him for his love of luxury, and carefully tucked that thought away. No point in thinking of her--she was dead, he'd avenged her, and well.

Closing the door behind him and thumbing the latch closed, he went to the duffle bag on his bed and unsealed it, spreading it open. It was filled with enough weaponry for a small war, and he was glad that the crew didn't bother to search the luggage of passengers. It might have been difficult to explain, and he was certain that the Captain and Jonah would've taken exception to it.

Now, where to hide everything? Decisions, decisions, he thought with a cold little smile.

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