Free Queen of Denial by Selina Rosen Page A

I've won because this woman will never be your queen. I have made her into . . ."
     
    He spasmed and died as his men began to fall around him.
     
    "Yes, yes? Go on," Drew said, "into . . . into what? I hate it when people don't finish their sentences. Well come on, boys and girls. We're burnin' photons."
     
    Drew took off at a dead run for the bridge, and the others followed. She threw the dead pirate captain out of his chair, and turned the filtration system on high. Then she started powering the ship up. A voice came at them through the ship's comlink.
     
    "Hey, Qwah! I thought you said that ship didn't run."
     
    "Hey, what can I say? I lied." Drew laughed and flopped herself down in the Captain's chair.
     
    "Come on, Qwah, you owe us. If it wasn't for us, you'd all be dead."
     
    "And if it wasn't for me, you'd all be dead. I think that makes us about even."
     
    "Damn it, Qwah. A deal's a deal. You do us outtah our part, and . . ."
     
    "What, Jack?" Drew laughed. "This is a pirate ship. Do I have to get vulgar, or do you understand how much instant fire power I command? Not to mention my sterling reputation for dog fights. No. I'd say that in a fire fight you have a more than ninety five percent chance of getting fried. But if you're feeling froggy, go ahead and jump. I feel like a good fight. Besides, my hyper-power just reached the ready mark."
     
    The ship took off with such speed that it sent everyone standing crashing to the floor.
     
    "Ladies and gentlemen, take-off will be a bit rough, so be sure and buckle up. Oops! I'm afraid that I did that all out of order."
     
    The ship stabilized, and Zarco and the others got up.
     
    "Why did you do that?" Facto demanded, pulling the robe back down to cover up his privates.
     
    "I said oops," she said. "Besides, you had it coming after the way you all treated me when you thought I was selling you out. I may be mercenary, I never claimed that I wasn't. But I'm a Salvager, and we have codes we live by, too."
     
    Zarco fell on his knees beside her, picked up her hand and kissed it. "Oh, my sweet love, can you ever forgive me?"
     
    "Oh, you're not going to start all that kissy-faced crap again, are you?"
     
    "Forgive me also, Majesty. And thank you for sparing my miserable life." Fitz said, bowing deeply.
     
    Stasha smiled. "I knew you could never really betray us."
     
    Drew smiled and looked expectantly at Facto, coughing a little.
     
    Facto shuffled his feet. "I'm sorry," he said flatly.
     
    "But . . . How? I don't understand." Zarco looked at Drew. "This ship appeared as soon as their ship was done for."
     
    Drew looked at him as if he were an idiot. "There was never anything wrong with their ship. The Lockhedes were in a big-ass hurry, so we needed to slow the ship down so that we wouldn't pass this ship."
     
    She looked at Facto and Stasha. "Aren't you glad I gassed the ship now? We all knew their plans. I knew they wouldn't allow the smugglers on board, and knowing about the gas, the smugglers wouldn't want on board."
     
    "Speaking of the gas, can I take this thing off?" Facto asked.
     
    Drew bent over a screen and punched some buttons. "The air seems to be clear now," she watched Facto remove the clear hose from his nose, and then pull the filtration bag off his back.
     
    "No, read that wrong."
     
    Facto tried to cram the apparatus back on, and Drew laughed loudly. "Just kidding." She took hers off, and threw it on the floor.
     
    "How did you know they would have filtration packs on board?" Fitz asked. "They aren't exactly standard equipment."
     
    "They are on smuggler ships. Besides, they came and got us off your ship after they had gassed us, didn't they?"
     
    She got on the ship's comlink and punched in a code.
     
    "Hello Garbage Scow, do you read? This is Purple Cat."
     
    "Great Gods, is that you, Drew? When we went past what was left of the Royal ship I thought you'd gone to that big junk yard in the sky. What the hell are you