Free 04 Dark Space by Jasper T. Scott Page A

crates.”
    “No, it’s not our fault, Ethan, but who are you going to blame when outlaws hold your family ransom for a shipment that got confiscated by an ISSF patrol? It’s not going to matter whose fault it is. It’ll be yours for not listening to your wife and finding a safer job.”
    “Look, I’ll make sure we only take jobs with the Freelancers’ Guild, and we’ll check the cargo ourselves before we agree to move it anywhere. We have a much bigger ship this time, so we’ll qualify for regular trade runs, not just courier.”
    “So how’s that any different from being a freighter pilot for the agri corps?”
    Ethan sighed and pressed two knuckled fists to his temples as if to beat away the encroaching headache he felt pulsing there. “Trust me it is. We can’t run from the Sythians in an agri corps’ freighter.”
    “Okay,” Alara said in a small voice. She reached up and pulled his fists away from his temples. “Look, I don’t want to fight on our wedding day.”
    Ethan shook his head. “Neither do I.”
    “Good. So, let’s be thankful for what we have and not worry too much about the future just yet.”
    Ethan let out his anxiety and frustration with a shaky sigh. “All right.” Suddenly he understood Alara’s change of heart about freelancing together. He glanced back over his shoulder and this time he winced to see his freshly-painted corvette. Something told him it wasn’t going to be his much longer. “The Trinity it is,” he said, nodding to himself.
    “Six months, Ethan. Prove to me that this is a safe move for us, that we can stay out of trouble and make a living while we’re at it.”
    “I will,” Ethan said, turning back to her. He found her hand in his and squeezed it tight.
    Alara smiled and stood on tiptoes to kiss him. “I believe you,” she said, reaching up to smooth away the wrinkles on his forehead. “Now, come on, the future’s waiting for us.”
    Ethan let her lead him away by the hand. They walked to the other side of the hangar and through a pair of doors to find both Kurlin and Darla Vastra waiting for them in the hall.
    “What took you so long?” Kurlin demanded, his gaunt features making him look sinister in the low light of the corridor.
    Alara smiled and answered for both of them. “I told him.”
    “Oh, darling!” Darla exclaimed, her eyes skipping from Alara to Ethan. “How do you feel? You’re going to be a father, Ethan.”
    “I already am a father,” he said.
    Kurlin frowned. “Yes, well, let’s hope that this time you’re around to raise your child. Perhaps you’d like to reconsider my offer.”
    Ethan turned to the old man with a frown, but Alara answered before he could.
    “Actually, Father, we’ve agreed to give freelancing one last try before we sell the ship.”
    “I see. That was the grub’s idea, I presume.”
    “Father!”
    “What? Being a grub is nothing to be ashamed of, not if you recognize it and do what you can to change your lot in life.” Kurlin turned to Ethan with a thin smile. “You don’t have to struggle. Sell your ship and you’ll have enough to buy a home—cash. After that you can get any old job to pay the bills. You’ll be better off than almost anyone.”
    “And when the Sythians return, we’ll be just as dead.”
    Kurlin snorted. “I’m afraid if the Sythians come back to finish us, it won’t matter how far you run, it will never be far enough. The admiral understands that, which is why he hasn’t ordered an evacuation of the sector. Where would we go that they won’t find us?”
    “Can we not talk about this now?” Alara said, her eyes smoldering with barely contained fury. “It’s our wedding day, not a time to discuss the end of the human race.”
    “I’m sorry. You’re right, my dear. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
    “And one more thing—Ethan and I have already made up our minds.”
    “But, Alara . . .” her mother began.
    “No buts. It’s our decision.”
    “Be sure