Post
by oldwrench » May 3rd, 2011, 10:54 pm
Ok, Chad's living the good life. Rachel is about to tell him her story, dinner is on the stove, things are looking good for the boy........... or are they??
This chapter got a bit long, hope you enjoy reading it.
Chapter 72
Chad followed the frontier woman into he house. The aroma in the kitchen instantly had
his mouth watering. He didn’t remember food ever smelling this good. Chad was a bit confused
though, he didn’t see a food processing unit anywhere in the room. In fact, he didn’t recognize
much of anything in the room, except perhaps the table and chairs. At Rachel’s urging Chad sat
down at the table.
Rachel turned to one of the large white cabinets placed around the kitchen. This one was
only as high as the counter top and had some shiny kettles setting on top. Rachel lifted the lid off
of one of the pots. Steam rolled out of the pot and Chad almost jumped up to stop her as she
braved the steam to poke something in the pot with a fork. “Good, the potatoes are done,” she put
the lid back on and turned a knob on the front edge of the unit. “Roy should be here any minute.”
“Um........ Who’s Roy, ma........... uh, Rachel?” Chad asked.
“He’s the local postal delivery man. He comes around a couple times a week.” She
answered. “He was Souske’s friend. He often helped in the shop, or they would go hunting or
fishing. Since Souske died, he’s been helping me keep up with the farm.” Rachel opened the tall
white cabinet and took out two bottles, she handed one to Chad, the bottle was very cold. “I
thought you could use a beer. I make the best around.”
Chad looked at the bottle, the brown liquid made him remember how thirsty he was.
“Um.... I really shouldn’t, we aren’t supposed to while we’re.........”
Rachel reached across the table and used an opener to pop the cap off the bottle. “I won’t
tell anyone if you don’t,” she grinned at him and sat back down. “Now you wanted to know how
I got here. I was abducted...... kidnaped and sold.” She almost laughed at the shocked look on
Chad’s face. “These outer colonies, especially the mining colonies, usually have a lot more men
than women. Seems, when the population of a dome or space colony gets to large, it’s the guys
who get booted out. Well, where there’s a lot of single guys and a bunch of money floating
around, women are good business. I’m sure there are still girls going missing in the lower cities. I
was grabbed by some guys and shoved into the back of a truck with a few other girls. Next thing
I knew we were on a freighter headed into space......... Don’t look so shocked, I know the
government regulates shipping, but there are as many crooks in the government as there are in the
sewers........ They spent the few days travel time getting us cleaned and dolled up. If you didn’t
co-operate you got beat.” Rachel took a big swallow from her bottle. “When we got here, we
were paraded onto a stage in a big building. They had a price for each of us, but it was more like
a bidding war. Well, I was never much for looks, and at the time I was a few months short of
fifteen years old. I was one of the last girls left, there wasn’t any bidding anymore. Souske had
come up to one of the sellers, he just kind of pointed at me and held out some cash. Looked like
they were haggling a bit on the price, but in the end, the guy took the money.” Rachel took
another drink and leaned back in her chair. “I wasn’t happy about being there, and less about
being sold. Souske was from one of the Asian space colony units. He was excess population and
decided to come out to a colony instead of joining the EDF. He was shorter than me, and about as
wide as he was tall. I didn’t want to mess with him, he could probably tear me in half. He didn’t
say anything on the ride all the way out here. I didn’t either, just tried to keep away from him.
When we pulled into the place he stopped and just looked strait ahead and started to talk. He had
a much softer voice than I had imagined. He told me that I could run off if I wanted, but there
wasn’t really anywhere to go. He told me he wouldn’t hurt me and if I didn’t like it here, he’d see
to it I got back home, provided I worked off what he’d paid for me. Then he just got out and went
to the house. Well, I stuck around, there was no where to go, and after a few days, I realized this
was a much better life than the sewers of Toledo had to offer. After a couple more days, I knew
that Souske was the kindest man I’d ever met, and a good provider. He was shocked that night
when I crawled into his bed with him, he said I was to young and he’d just have to wait till I was
old enough.” Rachel started to giggle, then laughed out loud. “I had to inform him that if he was
expecting some innocent young thing he was going to be sorely disappointed. There was no such
thing as a sixteen year old virgin in the lower cities............. We stayed together, and had three
kids. They’re off planet in school and at jobs. Souske died in an accident while he was out
prospecting. It was a tough time for me, but things have gotten better, well, things were till those
fools put those asteroids around the planet. Now things aren’t growing well at all.......... Well
that’s my story. So, how’d you get into the EDF and end up out here at the ass end of the
universe.
“It’s not much of a story,” Chad told her. “I got busted when the gang ran and left me at a
car jacking that turned out to be a set up. The judge gave me a choice, prison time or the
EDF........ the food’s better in the EDF.” Chad gave her the short outline of how he’d moved from
a tech to a pilot and wound up on the Krikav and finally on Mar Sara.”
“I’ll bet there’s more excitement to that story than your letting on,” Rachel guessed.
Chad knew he’d left out a lot of the fighting and a few other details. “Well, a bit more,
but nothing that important.” Chad looked at the bottle of beer in his hand and remembered only a
couple days before. He chuckled.
“Something funny about my beer?” Rachel asked him.
“Ah, no..... not that, it’s just, I was remembering one of the other pilots, when I offered to
get her a soda, she said she wished I could get her a beer. She should be here now.”
“So, you have a girlfriend.” Rachel grinned.
“No! It isn’t like that,” Chad tried to deny, a bit overly much. “We’re just friends, and.....
ah.”
“Sure,” Rachel said, knowingly, “What’s she like.”
Chad’s description painted her as smart and witty, really pretty, with curly blond hair and
bright blue eyes.”
Rachel laughed, “yup, you’re hooked. She’s your girlfriend.”
“Well, I wish she would be,” Chad sighed. “But she’s from a rich family, and John told
me girls like her don’t stick with guys of my class. He said she’s just having some fun and she’ll
just dump me when she gets tired of me.”
Rachel frowned, “doesn’t seem like this John knows much about women. If the girl
thinks you’re the right one for her, it doesn’t matter if you’re the emperors son or the lowest
beggar, She’ll stick by you till the end.” Dammit Dog jumped up and woofed. Rachel got up and
looked out the window. “Good, Roy’s here. I better get the potatoes mashed and the food ready
to serve.” She turned to the stove and started getting things ready.”
In a few moments the door opened and Roy came in. Chad noted that he was about John
Crichton’s height, medium build. He had green eyes and red hair that was going grey around the
edges. Chad figured he must be around Rachels age, maybe a few years older.
“Hello sweety, there wasn’t any mail.......” Roy stopped and looked at Chad. “Who’s
this?”
“Hi Roy,” Rachel returned, “This is Chad, he’s an EDF pilot and he comes from lower
Detroit on earth. I found him out in the shed borrowing some tools to fix his mech.”
In a swift motion, Roy drew a gun from the holster at his side and stepped up to the table.
He leveled the gun at Chad and growled, “He’s a liar! This boy’s no pilot, Rachel, he’s a liar and
a thief.”
For the second time that day, Chad was facing a gun, and he didn’t like it. His chair
clattered to the floor behind him as he jumped up. “I am not a liar!” He shouted. “And I was
going to..........”
A loud crack reverberated in the room, loud enough to hurt your ears.
Dogs have owners, Cats have staff
Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.