Free The Amazing Tales of Wildcat Arrows by Dara Joy Page A

IN THE REGION OF HIS TESTES. "
    "Good grief, what next!" Lucky did not expect a response from anyone. Nevertheless, Minmei gave her one.
    "THE RESULTANT EXPLOSION WILL ELIMINATE THIS SHIP… EVERYONE ON IT… SEVERAL NEARBY SATELLITES… AND POSSIBLY… CLUTCH CHOMPS' FLY-THRU SHIP WASH AND

QUICKIE MART."
    SpinDrift wailed. "Oh no, not Clutch Chomps! Where will I play my numerics?! My scratch cards?" He turned on Kerreth and pointed directly at his groin. "We have to get rid of it!"
    "Don't even think it, Floop boy." Kerreth looked ready and willing to defend the 'territory'.
    "Spin's been playing
Gotta Win
for a long time." Lucky explained. "He's hasn't won yet."
    "Hmf!" SpinDrift sniffed. "You don't win unless you
play
and I won't be able to play if he blows up Clutch Chomps. "
    "Not to mention half this sector," Lucky grumbled. "Why would they put something like that in him? It's dangerous. A lot of people could get killed—not to mention us."
    "THEY HAVE FOUND IT TO BE AN EFFECTIVE MEASURE AGAINST ANYONE STEALING OR TRANSPORTING A MASTERSTROKE 6000," Minmei explained helpfully.
    "But we didn't steal him! He came along of his own accord."
    "IT DOES NOT MATTER. MISS LUCKY. ONCE WE LEAVE ORBIT AND REACH THE CRITICAL RADIUS FROM SLIDE—WHICH I HAVE CALCULATED TO BE IN FORTY—TWO POINT FIVE MINUTES—HE WILL GO
BADDA-BOOM
. CORRECTION: MAKE THAT BIG BADDA-BOOM."
    "Are you absolutely sure that Slick has this implant, Minmei?"
    "I AM NOT EQUIPPED WITH THOSE KIND OF SPECIALIZED SCANNING SENSORS; HOWEVER, ALL MASTERSTROKE

UNITS ARE BUILT WITH THIS FAILSAFE. HE IS SET TO BLOW, MISS LUCKY."
    "The hell he will! Reverse course immediately, Minmei! We'll just put him back where we got him." She turned to Kerreth. "Sorry, Slick; it's
not
working out."
    It was working out just fine as far as he was concerned.
    She wasn't getting rid of him that easy.
    He had a stake in a certain miadne fantasy; he wasn't going to let them get it without him.
    Kerreth straightened up to his full height, towering over her. "It's not that clean, Red. For one, Slide has some nasty corporate partners. Ever hear of Crisyn?"
    Lucky paled. Crisyn was the big daddy of crime syndicates; they had deep, malevolent roots and were brazen enough to state exactly the kind of business they engaged in right in their name.
    That alone said plenty.
    Wildcat had crossed them on a number of occasions. The only reason her brother was still alive to tell the tales was that Crisyn needed his skills from time to time.
    Still, they were a scary bunch.
    "I can see by your reaction that you get my point. If you think they'll let you just drop me off and walk away, you're wrong. They'll detain you indefinitely by impounding your only way out. They'll take your ship. There's no telling what could happen to you all. Do you want to end up working at the Playhouse like I did, Red? I imagine it would be different for a human being… unbearable, perhaps. Am I not right?"
    Lucky swallowed. What a fine mess this pleasure droid had gotten them into! "Don't be ridiculous! I'll explain to the Boss of Slide exactly what happened."
    "CHANCES OF BEING BELIEVED ARE 1,867,399,644,801 TO 1."
    Kerreth looked pleased at that result. "Thank you, Minmei."
    "Well, we can't let him stay! He'll blow up the ship!"
    "IN FORTY ONE POINT NINE MINUTES."
    SpinDrift crawled on top of one of the consoles. The Floop was on a mission.
    Lucky's mouth pursed. "Don't you even think of hanging from that ceiling girder to have a nutty, Spin! I'm warning you!"
    Miffed, SpinDrift peevishly climbed down.
    "The last time he did that," Lucky confided to Kerreth, "he
quackle-plucked
half his coat off."
    "Quackle-plucked?"
    "Floop disorder. Carryin' on, cluckin' at the top of his lungs, yankin' out feathers—which clogged up three of Minmei's vents, I might add. What a disaster! Minmei overheated and we had to go to dock for a complete reboot. It was not a happy time, I can tell you."
    An image of her brother's icy blue