The shuttle made good time and docked with the interplanetary ferry idling above the planet. Even though Maisie had given him a cold shoulder, she still stayed close as they exited the shuttle and made their way onto their flight. It was the cheapest form of planet hopping available so there weren’t any attendants checking tickets. A quick swipe of a reloadable ticket card at the entrance of the passenger cabin was all that was necessary. Because they were outside of Alliance controlled sectors, there were no biometric scanners either.
Instead of chairs, the ferry offered only benches with seatbelts. This sort of transportation was illegal in Alliance controlled areas, but out here anything went. He tugged on Maisie’s sleeve and steered her toward a bench close to an exit. It was the safest place for them, especially if the ship collided with space trash or cracked apart from stress. In this part of the galaxy, that was actually more probable than not.
Maisie shifted closer to him when a tired mother and two young children looked at the empty space next to her. Maisie gestured to the space, inviting the woman to sit, but she seemed uncertain, especially when her gaze fell on him. He didn’t blame her for being skittish. He didn’t have the friendliest face, after all.
Understanding what the problem was, Maisie lifted the brim of the hat she wore just high enough to show her full face. The mother narrowed her eyes and then relaxed at the realization Maisie was a woman in men’s clothing. She smiled warmly and took the seat, placing the older of her two children in the space between them and keeping the infant on her lap.
Terror ignored the family to surveil the rest of the cabin. The benches were filling up fast and soon people would be standing in the aisles if the rear cabins were equally as full. Not wanting to deal with anyone’s bullshit, he stood up and gestured for Maisie to switch places with the woman and her children. After everyone moved into their new spots, the mother sat in his place and Maise sat in the mother’s. He dropped down next to Maisie and stretched out his legs, rudely blocking their aisle and making it clear he wasn’t interested in his sharing his area with anyone else.
The flight departed the shuttle pickup station and rapidly increased speed until it hit cruising pace. The skinny little boy next to Maisie picked at the buttons and patches on her jacket. She seemed amused by him and enjoyed his attention. He wasn’t at all surprised by her softer, nurturing side. To see her playing with the little boy while his tired mother rested and nursed her dozing baby made him feel things he didn’t know were possible.
Hazard’s voice popped into his head, telling him to retire, find a mate and have children. Watching Maisie play peek-a-boo with the toddler drove home how right Hazard had been. Yet, sitting there next to Maisie in that cramped, smelly interplanetary ferry, he wasn’t sure how to make it happen. How did he get from here—on the run with a fugitive—to there, a life where he and Maisie could be together without the threat of his own people coming to arrest and execute her.
The possibilities rattled round and round in his head as their flight continued. He got up once to take a leak, using his trip to the rear of the ship as recon. All of the other cabins were equally as packed as the one he and Maisie had chosen. Some of them were far rowdier, and he suspected there would be at least one bloody flight before they arrived at their next destination.
The unisex bathroom at the rear was filthy, and he wrinkled his nose at the horrible stench. If Maisie needed to go, she would have to hold it. There was no way in hell he was letting her come near this cesspool of germs. She had bandaged her injured hand back at the safe house, but all it would take was one microscopic blip of bacteria to render her sick and feverish.
When he returned to their bench, he found Maisie spooning bits of one of their rations into the little boy’s mouth. His mother was eating from another package and smiled gratefully at him when he approached. He kept his expression neutral even though his inner soldier wanted to frown at the easy way Maisie was handing over their provisions.