The only thing softer than Jun’s steady gaze was the brush of his thumb down Theo’s jaw. “The best thing.”
Jun’s attention fell to Theo’s lips, the damp heat of his breath whispering across Theo’s upturned face as he swayed even closer and closed his eyes in tremulous anticipation. Finally.
Finally.
Boom clattered into the room, and Jun wrenched his hand away with a long step back as she dropped an armful of weapons on the floor between them. Theo eyed the pile thoughtfully, trying to determine which he was going to use to kill her with for the interruption.
Jun refused to look at him and, instead, crouched over the pile. But it was clear he’d been affected, his back still heaving with uneven breath as a wash of color stole over his cheeks.
Theo would have found it endearing if he weren’t so incredibly frustrated.
Boom squatted beside Jun, the cuff of her boots slouching low to reveal more than a hint of knife. “You’re lucky we had this crate of outdated Verge tech. They’ll use just about anything over there, and half of this shit doesn’t even have the capacity to Connect.”
With a sneer, Jun held up a battered, rusted ray gun pinched between his thumb and forefinger. “You really expect me to use this stuff, Boom? I might as well just hit them with a rock.”
Theo picked up a rifle nearly as long as his arm, and yelped as Jun immediately yanked it out of his arms with an admonishing grunt.
“No. Absolutely not.”
Boom handed Theo a palm-sized, square device with a single button covered by a plastic dome, currently latched shut. “Here. You get a single-use stun detonator. That should take out anyone within a twelve-foot radius. Just hit the button, drop it, and run. You’ve got about five seconds to get out of range.”
It was blocky, and unattractive. Theo turned it over in his hands with a disappointed sigh. “It lacks a certain amount of flair, though, doesn’t it? Couldn’t I have something with just the tiniest bit more style?”
Jun decided upon an ancient-looking ray gun and a set of black iridescent metal blades. He tucked everything away so efficiently on his person that Theo would never have detected their presence if he had not personally witnessed the concealment.
Jun then turned his attention to Theo, tugging his jacket open. He shoved Theo’s stun detonator into a hidden interior pocket of the jacket, tucked up under Theo’s arm in a very discreet lump. “There. Do not use this except as a last resort. Basically, if I’m not dead, leave it alone.”
Theo grasped his arm as he tried to pull it away, fingers tight with alarm. “Dead? Do you anticipate such an outcome as a likely possibility?”
Jun pried his grip away with careful fingers, allowing a fleeting squeeze, just once, around Theo’s palm. “It’s best to stay alert and prepared when making contact on these sorts of deals.”
Theo observed as Boom examined and discarded several weapons, then decided on a discrete pistol that disappeared into her modest cleavage. “Why do you engage in such business ventures if they are so dangerous?” he asked her.
Boom shrugged as Axel joined them in the bay. She tossed another detonator at his head, laughing when he scrambled to catch it. “High risk, high payoff.”
Axel clipped the detonator to his belt and made a rude gesture in her direction. She ignored it entirely, and Theo stepped back to get out of the line of the daggers Axel was glaring.
“I see,” Theo said. “Nothing ventured, and all that. Still, couldn’t you find employment less likely to result in catastrophe?”
Axel’s anger turned to Theo with sharp, clipped words in a sarcastic tone. “Well, you know, dollface, turns out that galactic subterfuge requires funding and an absolutely massive set of balls. Right, Captain?”
“Shut up, Axel.”
If Theo had thought Axel’s tone was sharp, Jun’s would have left the smaller man bleeding.
Axel made an exaggerated gesture with his organic arm, ending with a snap of realization. “No, yeah, I forgot. Your supersecret plan that only everyone on this ship already knows about, including your new boyfriend, judging by the work you’ve given him. Yeah, I’ll be sure to keep mum on that, Park.”
Jun took a heavy step toward Axel, who flinched away, face going blank and white as sim-parchment beneath his freckles. Jun took a slow, deliberate step back, hands held palm out at his waist. “I’m not going to hurt you, Ax. I don’t run that kind of Crew.”
Axel was still pale as he rubbed his hand behind his neck, but he faced Jun without fear. “Yeah, I know, Captain. Old habits die hard, I guess.”
Jun’s posture was rigid and his expression sincere as he spoke low and fervently. “I made you a promise, and I intend to keep it. You won’t ever work for a rough Crew again, not while I’m around.”
The bright, flickering lights of the cargo bay gave the illusion of tears in Axel’s eyes, there and gone by the next flash of light. “Saving the galaxy one scrawny little shit at a time, right?”
With a surprising display of camaraderie, Jun clapped him once on the back. “If that’s what it takes.”
Marco scooted past them, his metal augment clanking more heavily against the flooring of the ship than his organic foot, despite wearing the same boots on each one. He opened the bay doors with a flourish and a broad, cheeky smile. “Stay safe, Captain. I’ll go get Sylvia a bellyful of crystals and have her ready to go for you.”
The unexpected sight of Axel and Boom descending down the ramp behind Theo sent him puzzling. “I was under the impression that the pair of you wouldn’t accompany us.”
Axel glanced up from where he was picking at his teeth with a narrow attachment. “Oh, we won’t be going to the drop. I’m just running out to grab some nosh, and who knows what nefarious scheme Boom is up to?”
Shoulder
