Burning Up Flint (12 page)

Iron stormed into a room that was nothing more than a hatch room. If the seal of the sleeve broke this room would keep the jumper shuttle from a hull breach. He hit the button that opened the doors. A second later she was in a much smaller cargo area. She saw two large cages set up. Iron set her on her feet and grabbed her by the back of her neck.

Mira saw five human women locked in the larger cage. They wore blue space jumpsuits that were comfortable for travel, sporting their company logo on the breasts of their suits. She only got a glance at them before Iron tore open the smaller cage door and shoved her roughly inside. She fell inside and cried out as the metal floor bruised her knees. The door slammed shut behind her.

“If you were mine I’d kill you,” Iron growled. “Right after I took a few inches off your ass with my belt.”

Mira slumped, collapsing on her legs so she sat on them. Her wrists burned with pain and her hands tingled painfully and sensation hit her as the blood flowed back into them. She was shaking as she tore away the corded ties they’d used on her wrists. Her wrists were cut and blood dripped. All she could do was cradle them to her chest.

“Here,” Iron snarled. He shoved something through the bars. “Clean and deal with them yourself.”

The first-aid kit hit the floor of the cage. Her gaze lifted. Iron was standing there glaring at her.

“Thank you.”

He spun away, storming for the door they’d just come through but it opened before he reached it. Flint and four
cyborgs
entered the cargo area. Mira’s eyes went to Flint but he didn’t look her way, not once. He turned to one of his
cyborgs
.

“Tell Ice to release the sleeve. We’ll blow their hull out and tow their ship to the
Star
. We could use the metal off the ship for building materials on Garden. Most of their cargo was secured so it won’t float away. Do life scans to make sure they all die.”

Mira watched Flint leave the cargo area without ever turning his head to look at her. The men secured the door and then they followed Flint out. With shaking hands she opened the medical kit and started to work on her bleeding wrists.

Chapter Nine

Mira watched the five women who were all in their early twenties to mid-thirties. She’d gotten their names but she could only remember two of them. Her mind was foggy and she knew she was suffering from shock, blood loss, and she had a fever. The pirate ship’s hold had been filthy so she’d injected her arm with an antibiotic to guard against infection. She didn’t know how long she’d lain on the floor, shivering and miserable, but she knew she was in bad shape.

Dawn, a small redhead with bright blue eyes, was crouched in the other cage watching Mira. “You’re really sick.”

Mira clenched her teeth to keep them from chattering. “Is it cold in here?”

“No. You’re burning up. I can see how flushed you are.” Dawn stood up and yelled. “Hello! Someone help! Can anyone hear me? We need help in here!”

In less than a minute the doors slid open as Iron stormed in. He eyed the redhead. “What is wrong?”

Dawn pointed at Mira. “She’s dying, damn it. She’s shivering and the shot she gave herself isn’t working. Please help her.”

Mira watched Iron turn to face her. A frown marred his features as he stared down at her. He reached for his waist to fish out a key. “You try something and I’ll hit you. Got it?”

She didn’t even bother to respond. She curled into a ball, shivering too badly to even think of a smartass response. She was freezing and miserable. Iron opened the door to the cage and crouched when he stepped in. He tore off one of his gloves and touched her cheek then her forehead. She saw his eyes narrow as his jaw clenched.

“Damn.” He dropped to his knees, put his arms under Mira and lifted her. He got to his feet and ducked out of the cage, carrying her against his chest. “Ice, contact the
Star
immediately. Hook us up fast. Mira is really sick. We need to get her to Doc right now.”

“Understood,” a deep male voice said through the speaker system. “Should I report this to Flint?”

“Yes.” Iron glanced down at Mira. “She’s in bad shape.”

Mira shivered in his arms though his body was warm against hers. As he studied her carefully his gaze softened. She was shocked that he seemed to care whether she was dying or not. He cradled her gently, walking to the door where she’d entered the ship. He stood there to brace his back to the wall.

“Hang on, Mira. We’re connecting to the
Star
. Doc will fix you right up.”

She just stared up at him. He watched her with worried eyes. He shifted her weight as the ships lightly bumped. Iron pushed away from the wall, holding her tighter. He faced the door and waited. It finally slid open. Mira saw corridors, recognizing the
Star
. It was her last thought before she passed out.

* * * * *

Mira woke when her clothing was being removed. She opened her eyes to see that Doc and Iron were stripping her. She tried to fight but she didn’t have the strength. Doc leaned over her, frowning.

“Calm down, Mira. We’re getting you out of your clothes. It’s all right. I need to check you over. You have an infection somewhere and it’s not your damaged wrists. I inspected them first. You need a stronger antibiotic but I need to figure out which one to give you. Do you know of any other injuries on your body?”

She couldn’t remember any. She shook her head and then groaned in pain as Iron pulled her boots from her feet. She looked down her body as large hands touched her hips. Iron glanced at her as he unfastened her pants. He shot Doc a look.

“I never thought I’d get the chance to take her pants off, considering how possessive Flint is of her.”

Doc looked pissed off. “Just strip her or get the hell out of my med bay. She’s a patient right now. Where is Flint? Has he been informed?”

Iron opened her pants and hooked an arm under Mira’s knees. He lifted her ass off the table and hooked his other hand at the waistband of her pants. He jerked them down, exposing her to their sight. She was too weak and sick to be embarrassed that she didn’t have underwear and that both men were seeing her naked.

“He was informed.”

“So where the hell is he?” Doc sliced open the front of her
shirt,
tearing it away from her once he’d sliced down each sleeve.

“He is in Control.” Iron stared openly at her naked body. “I don’t see any injuries.”

“Let’s flip her,” Doc said.

Mira didn’t fight as the men gripped her to flip her naked body. Then Doc cursed. “They scratched her. Those are fingernail marks. Damn mutants.”

“What’s wrong with me?” Mira’s teeth chattered. “I’m so cold.”

A firm hand landed on her back. “Hold still. Were you raped, Mira?”

“No.”

She heard two men sigh in relief. “One of the mutants clawed your lower back. Did they touch you at all? Try to remove your pants?”

She nodded. “I offered them ransom money to stop. They did.”

“One of them scratched you. The thing about mutants is they are dirty bastards who carry all kinds of nasty infections and they broke your skin.” Doc sounded pissed. “Hand me the red injector,” he ordered Iron.

“Is she going to survive?” Iron sounded worried.

“If she responds to the
hyperantibiotic
then she will recover. If she is septic then she might not make it. I don’t think the infection has gone that far but we have to get it under control. If her fever spikes too high, she’ll be in danger of convulsions and brain damage. We’ll know in a few hours. If we caught it early enough and the meds kick in, she’ll be a little weak but she’ll recover quickly.

“I guess the bastards hadn’t had a woman in a long time. She’s too pretty and would fetch a good price as a sex slave. They had to know they were carrying infection and that raping her would kill her in a matter of days just from them touching her.”

Iron cursed. “What are her chances?”

“It’s up to how strong she is,” Doc sighed. “She’s a little thing.” Mira flinched in pain when Doc injected the
hyperantibiotic
. He covered her with a blanket and reached up to pat her shoulder. “Hang in there, honey,” Doc said softly. “You’re tough.”

“I’ll go report to Flint and tell him how serious this is.” Iron sighed. “I’m sure he’ll be down immediately.”

“I’m going to put her out. She needs to rest to fight the infection.”

Doc leaned down so Mira could see his face and smiled. “Flint will come down and hold your hand, okay? I’m going to put you to sleep now.”

“I’m so co-cold.”

“I know, honey. You just sleep so you get better.” He lifted the sheet at her hip and gave her another injection.

Mira drifted to sleep.

* * * * *

Over the next few days, every time she opened her eyes, Doc was sitting on the med bed next to her. He’d walk over to her to tell her she was doing great. She moved her arm once and realized he had hooked her up to liquid nourishment.

“Flint?”

Doc looked pissed. “He’s not here, Mira. He came once. He’s worried about you.”

He looked away when he said it. Pain hit Mira. She was deathly sick and Flint didn’t care. He was too angry at her for fleeing the
Star
and him. She blinked back tears.

“He’ll never forgive me, will he?”

Doc hesitated. “
Cyborgs
are…well, they are human in a lot of ways but they take certain things badly. I think he feels that you betrayed his trust. That’s the worst thing you can do to one of them. He’s pretty damn angry.”

“Is there a way to get rid of his marks? Has he asked you to do that so he can sell me to someone else?”

Doc looked away. It was enough of an answer for Mira. Flint had asked. Doc cleared his throat. “Markings like that are permanent. I’d have to remove inches of tissue and you’d have to re-grow it. It would be weeks of pain. You’d be locked in a med bed to prevent bleeding and scarring during skin and tissue rejuvenation if it would even work. Those marks are meant to be forever. Flint understands that. I told him when he asked.”

She shut her eyes, fighting tears. “So he’ll have to sell me to someone besides a
cyborg
, right?”

Doc hesitated.
“Yeah.
No
cyborg
would want you with his markings.
At least not long term.
It would bother them.
They— Oh, hell.
This is upsetting you. Don’t worry about this now, Mira. Just get well.”

She went back to sleep.

It was the sleeping cycle when she woke next. She was finally starting to feel better. The lights in the med bay were dim and Doc wasn’t on the med bed next to her, reading. She lifted her head and almost gasped. Fear hit her instantly at the sight of a large man standing at the head of her bed. Her gaze flew up.

Flint was watching her with his arms crossed over his chest. She stared at him in stunned silence, taking in that he’d cut his hair. It was shocking to see his longer locks gone. It was cut short—only about an inch long. It made him look ruthless with his mouth in a tight line while fury burned in his dark blue eyes.

“Flint…” She whispered his name.

“I came to evaluate my property.” His voice was deep and cold.

She flinched. “I’m sorry.”

He growled low in his throat. “You’re sorry? What are you sorry about, Mira? Sorry that you almost cost us the raid on the
Piera
because we were docking to her when I got word that you’d stolen a pod? Are you sorry for the fuel and resources we wasted going after you? Are you sorry that you didn’t get away? Maybe you’re sorry that pirates caught you before I could. Maybe you’re sorry that you’re back here. What are you sorry for exactly?”

Mira gripped the blanket. She felt weak but carefully sat up on the bed, wrapping the blanket tighter around her naked body. “I’m just sorry for everything. I didn’t think past escaping. I thought if I got away that I wouldn’t be just property anymore.”

He swayed a little on his feet as his hands fisted until his knuckles whitened at his sides. Flint’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “You are property, Mira. You are mine to do with as I wish. You almost got yourself killed and you could have gotten me, along with the crew of the
Rally
, killed with you if those pirates had gotten the drop on us instead.”

“I’m sorry. I never meant to put your life in danger.”

“You did.” He took a step toward her and then halted. “You are going to have to be punished for what you’ve done, Mira. You’ve cost me a lot of money. I’m the one who had to pay for the fuel that both ships wasted going after you.”

Movement in the dim room caught Mira’s attention. She saw Iron standing about fifteen feet back, behind Flint. Flint turned his head, motioning Iron forward. Iron strode closer. Mira eyed the man with dread. She knew he didn’t like her and she remembered his suggestions of what he’d do to her if she were his when he’d shoved her into the cage. Was he going to suggest her death or have Flint take a belt to her ass to remove some layers of skin?

He stopped next to Flint to glare down at Mira. Terror flooded her at the anger she saw in the other
cyborg’s
eyes. She turned to Flint, silently pleading with him. His eyes were cold.

“I’ve sold you to Iron.”

The words shocked and horrified Mira. She literally jerked back on the bed. “Please, Flint. I’m sorry. I’ll pay you every cent I cost you. I have money. Please don’t do this.”

Flint’s mouth tensed. “I don’t want your money. Iron owns you now.” Flint turned on his heel, presenting her with his back, as he marched away.

“Flint, please…”

She shoved off the med bed and got to her feet. She gripped the blanket around her to keep her body covered and tried to run after the retreating Flint. She felt a tug on her arm where the nutrition IV was attached. She tore it away. Dizziness hit her but she stumbled after him, dragging the blanket that was around her body.

“Flint!” she yelled.

He froze, turning around slowly. Mira reached him and grabbed his shirt with her free hand. She clutched at him desperately as she stared up into his surprised features. She’d forgotten how big and tall he was.