use for someone with your unique skill set.”
“Are you offering me a job, Peshlakai?” Rache sounded amused.
“I could probably talk someone there into doing so.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Rache said, the words of someone who had no intention of giving the offer a further thought.
“At least let your people take some leave after this,” Yas called as Rache stepped through the doorway. “Your chief engineer needs surgery and physical therapy.”
Rache lifted a hand. In parting? Acknowledgment? Agreement? Yas didn’t know.
“That is a difficult man.”
Kim sat in her pod in the guest cabin Casmir had shown her to—her mother had messaged to let her know she and Tork had settled in next door—listening to comm chatter and wondering why she was on the ship. From what she gathered, it wasn’t much safer on the station, but she felt useless. She would have liked to pace, but the gravity was erratic as the ship dove and turned and at last, she was fairly certain, spiraled downward in a spin. Her stomach wasn’t as sensitive as Casmir’s, but even she experienced twinges of queasiness.
Reuben stared blandly at the door, his hand around a grip so he wouldn’t tumble away. She wondered if the crusher also felt helpless, stuck down here as her bodyguard. Nobody had even visited her since Casmir left. Not that the other crushers would be doing anything more interesting. If they got boarded or were commanded to board another ship, then they would have more of a purpose. Maybe she would too, though she wore only a galaxy suit with a stunner, not combat armor and a rifle. Rache’s suggestion that she hide in a cabinet during any combat wasn’t without merit, but she hated being useless.
“The lucky crusher is on this ship, Kim Sato,” Reuben stated.
“Uhm, what?”
“Casmir Dabrowski calls the lucky crusher Gad. Perhaps his presence on this ship will keep it from being destroyed. My file on human facial expressions informs me that you may be feeling pensive, either due to the battle or the fact that you are sharing a cabin with an unlucky crusher.”
Kim stared at him, wondering if this new crusher was even buggier than Zee. “I’m actually feeling useless because I have no purpose in this battle. I wasn’t thinking about luck.” Or crushers, but she kept that to herself in case it would hurt his feelings. Normally, she wouldn’t think a robot could have feelings, but this one seemed… special. And who knew what capacities Casmir had programmed them with?
“I have a purpose—to protect you—but I also wish I could contribute in a meaningful way.”
“It’s nice to feel useful.”
“Yes.”
The ship shifted course hard, and Kim’s stomach protested. During a lull in the maneuvers, she ordered the pod to release her and went to the trunk she’d strapped to the deck before takeoff. As she dug through the contents for anti-nausea medicine, she couldn’t help but notice the black box with elegant gold embellishments that barely fit in the big trunk. It was long and narrow with some heft, but she wouldn’t call it heavy. A ribbon wrapped around the box kept it closed.
She’d been on her way to meet Casmir, so there hadn’t been time to open it when it had first arrived, delivered by an enigmatic servant who’d said only that it was a gift from an admirer. Rache, of course. She reached for it now, running a hand along the sleek box. Should she open it? Or wait until the battle was over? Maybe it was something that would be useful in this situation though she couldn’t imagine what. Would Rache have sent her some weapon to defend herself against invading mercenaries?
Since the ship was flying straight for the moment, Kim risked untying the ribbon. She was about to lift off the lid when the door chime buzzed.
“I will protect you from assassins, Kim Sato,” Reuben stated.
“Thank you, but I don’t think they usually ring the doorbell before coming in.”
He looked at her. “There was no bell.”
“Never mind. Will you open it, please?”
The crusher did so but did not shift aside to allow entry—maybe he thought he might have to block a barrage of weapons fire. Kim’s mother scrambled between his legs.
Reuben started to reach for her, but Kim blurted, “It’s fine. She can come in.”
“Is this the same one from the party?” Her mother’s monkey-droid nose wrinkled.
“My bodyguard. Temporarily.”
“I didn’t realize the ramifications when it was following you around, carrying your trunk earlier. I thought it might be a