Galactic Gambit

Chapter 21

After they drank their beers that Captain Prisban bought them, Neo and her crew weaved their way back through the crowd to the door, making sure to steer clear of any more flying mugs. The connecting platform offered lodging, and Neo decided to rent a room for the night. She needed a break from everyone and especially Reiyna's prying ears, and she would like to have at least one conversation with Rhea where she didn't feel like she was being listened to.

Neo was all about her privacy and had had none. She walked her crew back to the docking port and informed them on her decision to stay for the night. Reiyna gave her a thumbs up and went on into the ship. Pax looked weary but continued on inside without a word, like he even had a right to say anything after what had happened. She was thankful that he didn't because she was liable to explode on him.

As she turned to leave for the bridge, Asa caught her wrist. "Neo, not that I don't think you can't handle yourself, but it would make me more comfortable if you weren't staying here alone. This place can be dangerous." His eyes looked pleading and hurt, but she pulled away. He didn't get to be the hurt one.

"I don't care what you do, stay here if you want, but I'm going to get a room—by myself. You don't have to worry about me, I'm perfectly fine being alone." Neo turned and started for the bridge.

He followed along behind her, a deep sigh coming out as he said, "Neo, please talk to me. It's been days and I don't even know what happened." She kept her gaze trained on the window, looking out to the docked ships beside her own instead of responding. "Was it the game?" She didn't want to talk about it and cry all over again because she had been stupid and fell for his charming crap hook, line, and sinker.

They got to the platform where the kiosk sat for the room rental. This place was not quite as nice as Cosmo's, and Cosmo's was drab and couldn't be considered clean by her standards. She selected a single room and scanned her band. Her key card popped out and she went down the hall ahead where numbered doors lined both sides. Asa caught up a moment later with his own keycard in hand.

"Will you please just tell me what happened? I can't stand this not knowing. You walked out with Pax that night and have avoided me since. Did something happen between the two of you?" He badgered her as she looked from room to room for her number.

She let out a frustrated breath as she stopped in front of her door, "Seriously?" She slid the keycard in, and the door unlocked. Neo didn't turn around as she walked in and shut the door, leaning against it as she took several deep breaths.

Asa pounded on the door and called through, "Please, just tell me what happened, and I swear I'll leave you alone after. I just need to know. I can't stand you being mad at me." She waited, silently standing against the door. She could hear his frustrated breaths as he let out a string of curses under his breath before he knocked again. "Please Neo. If you don't open, I'll just sleep out here against the door until you do."

She was so frustrated she could scream. Neo pulled the door open and stepped aside, "Fine, I tell you what happened and then you leave me the hell alone." He looked at her as if she had stabbed him in the heart as he walked in. There was a decent sized bed, bigger than hers on the ship, and there was a small table with a lamp mounted above and two chairs on either side. Simple, and definitely nothing special. The mirror on the wall had been broken, but at least the glass was cleaned up.

Asa took a seat and watched her as she pulled her jacket off and tossed it on the bed, pacing the floor in the space between the door and the table. "Pax told me what you said on Ran'am. About what you owed him. You've just been using me to hurt him, and I fucking fell for it. So, tell me, since you wanted to have this conversation so bad, was everything you said to me a lie? Just a trick to fool me in to serving up your revenge on him?"