Into the Black Hole

Chapter 20: Shifting Alliances

"I thought I told you to not be an idiot," Felix reprimands me from across the room. He and the other surviving pirates reactivate their magnetic shoes, and Blaze follows suit.

The navigator leads my feet to the floor of the ship, the attraction between the boots and metal increasing until I'm "standing" on the floor. While grateful he saved my life, his presence is perturbing, so I inch away from his touch. "Thank you," I say in a small voice.

He inclines his head and smiles crookedly. At least he no longer looks like he desires to rip out my throat.

Blaze travels to the navigation station and presses a button on the touchscreen, which transforms the shields and fortresses back into regular stations with mundane monitors. Felix moves close to me, his hand fluttering over my probably swollen cheek. "You alright?" he mouths.

"Yeah," I mouth back and nod.

Directing his next words to Blaze, Felix expresses, "Ailee didn't recognize the code phrase. Thank you for rescuing her."

The navigator covers one eye with the palm of his hand and faces the Captain. Then, Blaze twists his palm outward, toward Felix who's several meters away. Felix nods in acknowledgement, and Blaze proceeds to type on his computer.

I ask, "What does that mean?"

"Cosmic sign language: An eye for an eye. You saved one of us," Felix responds, glancing at Thomson, who's staring at me, "so Blaze saved you."

That saying has a different definition in my book, but I don't point it out.

"Should have stayed in the storage room, rock girl," Blaze teases over his shoulder. "More trouble than you're worth... I misjudged you. You are not a sheep after all."

I lift my eyebrows, commenting, "That almost sounded like a compliment."

"Don't get used to it." Blaze meets my gaze and smirks before busying himself once more with the monitors.

Despite disapproving of pirates, I can't help but admire them.

He risked certain death in order to save my life.

That took cojones.

Somebody seizes my chin, and I habitually jerk back. Midnight eyes bore into mine, and I pause when I realize it's only Thomson. "Does it hurt?" he wonders, examining my cheek bone.

My fingers encircle his wrist, and I tug on his arm, hinting he should let go. "Just a bruise," I tell him. "I'll be fine."

He doesn't let go. "You're bleeding."

I am? "Not much. Less than you." My gaze wanders to his other arm, his sleeve rolled up, tourniquet secured, and wound wrapped in first aid kit bandages. I'm impressed he treated himself that fast. All of a sudden, he embraces me, but he's so much taller that the hug is a bit clumsy. It grows on me after a couple seconds, and my stomach tingles. I soothingly rub his back. "Hey, everything's okay. Take it easy. You should get that injury checked out by Doctor River. Most likely, it needs to be cleaned." It would've been better if he kept the knife in, but the circumstances were unsavory at the time.

"Sure. Anything for you," Thomson concurs, then grazes his lips down my neck.

Oh.

He must have lost a lot of blood.

This is a little too intimate for me, especially in a room full of Cosmics gaping in utter disbelief. Plus, his arm has a cavernous hole in it that requires disinfecting and sealing ASAP. We don't have time for this.

A devilish look appears in Blaze's eyes as he suggests, "Maybe you rocks should get a cabin."

Thomson's shoulder is blocking the majority of my view, but I clearly witness the Captain's face twist as though he recently ate bitter citrus peels. He grumbles, "We're on a budget," and stalks toward us.