Living in Freefall (Living on the Run Book 1) by Ben Patterson Page A

Kori
had discovered that water containers made of Plyocene leached anthroquinone— a
harsh laxative —when exposed to Rhthro-magnetrometer energy waves. This
amused Rachel because most pirate ship drinking water containers are made of
Plyocene. As Race often did, she shared this info with others, including Ericca.
Like a squirrel storing nuts, Ericca tucked this news away for a rainy day.
    That rainy day presented itself in the form of a pirate
blockade. No freighter could get through to the colony on Tochni-Omechron One.
Without the much needed supplies, the colony would quickly fall to the pirates. Ericca had an idea .
    But having been raised by pirates she had a soft spot for
them. Unlike Confed dillholes— as she liked to call them —she saw no
reason to kill pirates without a justifiable need. To leave an entire pirate
contingency with severe diarrhea Ericca considered reasonable. Riley did too.
    Used once again, that same idea allowed Freefall to
slip past the Straits of Andus undetected, but those poor guys— Riley shook
his head at the recollection —their being left with fewer lavatories than
they had need of. And to think, even on a pirate ship, rank has its privileges.
Knowing Ericca was on his side, Riley was elated. He felt that if their enemies
only knew who was working against them— namely Ericca Adrianna Archer —they
would’ve given up quickly, and quietly.
    Ericca’s ‘ I-have-an-idea ’ said just so, usually
spelled disaster for an unsuspecting enemy, and excitement in the extreme for
everyone else. ‘I have an idea,’ left unsaid meant flying straight into a
Confederate Carrier’s hanger bay at five-hundred mph— as they just had —or
head-on at Talons whose aim was to kill them— as they just had —or any
number of things just this side of insane. Were they really though? Riley
believed her ideas were actually well beyond. That was why they worked so well.
She was a risk-taker, an out-of-the-box thinker. And she had a mean
streak—not toward him, never toward him —but no one hated the
Confederates more than she.
    And she loved sleight of hand, smoke and mirrors, and other
misdirects. Dad had once said, “If Ericca bet she could get the Ace of Spades
to jump out of a deck of cards, dance the jig, and then spit in your eye, then
you had better wear goggles and be ready to hear Irish music.”
    If a sane man had just heard her use that phrase “I have an
idea” and understood Ericca in the slightest, he would seek to distance himself
in a hurry. But Riley was stuck in a little two-seater with no place to go.

Chapter Nine
    As the Galleass approached, Jordon slowed Freefall to
a stop. “Hold position here, Freefall .”
    “Aye, sir.”
    Jordon went down to the cargo bay with his mother to meet
the arriving shuttle. After they opened the huge doors, a two man cargo-carrier
entered the bay and settled to the deck. A moment later, Buchannan French, Mara’s
younger brother, popped his hatch and dropped a foot to the floor. His pilot
and first officer, David Courtney, climbed out the other side.
    Uncle Buck pulled himself out of his seat and greeted his
older sister with a warm hug. But he turned his back to his nephew as if the
man didn’t exist. “So what’s this about, sis?” Buck asked her.
    “Still holding a grudge, huh, Uncle Buck?” Jordon said.
    Buck turned cold eyes to his nephew. “You asked me here. I
came. What do you want?”
    Jordon gestured to a crate behind him. “Five nine epsilon
three omega.”
    Buck went to the box and keyed the code into its touch pad.
The lid slid back and disappeared behind the crate. Inside were black,
fist-sized cubes. Buck pulled one out to examine. “A.I. cubes?”
    “For your ships,” Mara said. “Those are Jordy’s latest and greatest.”
    “There are thirty,” Jordon said. “If you need more, I’ll get
them to you, given time . I suggest you install them only in the ships of
your most trusted captains.”
    Buck lifted the