Pirate (LGBT - Sci-Fi - Romantic)

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten 

He saw Conn flinch away from him, heard his breath catch in his throat. 

Now would come the excuses, thought the Captain cynically, the "I was only doing my job," and the threats, "let me go or I'll hunt you down to the ends of space," or "do you know the penalty for assaulting a patrol officer?" 

Instead, Conn made a huge effort to speak calmly. "Connell, my name is Liam Connell." He turned his head so that he was looking up into his face, pleading for him to believe what he was saying. "Nick? I never planned to kiss you in a million years, it just happened. I swear to you on my life I didn't know I had those nanobots in me." 

"I suppose you weren't sent here to spy for the Patrol either?" Mars asked disbelievingly. 

"Well yes, I was," there was no point in denying it. "My mission was to find out the location of your bases and report that information back to the Patrol, at least that's what I thought it was. That's why I came aboard and tried to get accepted as part of your crew." 

"And I suppose it all started out as a mission and then you found yourself falling in love with me, against your will," Mars jeered. "Just like a holovid romance!" That was a bit too close to the bone, he wished he'd kept his mouth shut. Luckily Conn didn't realise what he'd just betrayed. 

"There's no need to mock me!" Conn protested fiercely. "You know that's not true. I just wanted to ... to thank you, for not hurting the boy, that's all. I didn't know about the fucking nanobots!" 

The pirate winced, that's what he'd thought himself at the time, that Conn was merely expressing his gratitude, before wishful thinking overrode his better judgement. 

Conn shut his eyes, why was he even bothering? Mars would never believe him, and even if he did it wasn't likely to change anything. 

"Nick, please don't do this. Do you want me to beg? I'm begging. You can punch me senseless if you like, I won't fight back, but please don't do this." 

Mars stared down, unable to move, at the other man. The sound of his name on Conn's lips cut like a razor across his heart strings. So many lies, he told himself, trying to stay focussed on his rage, he probably wasn't even straight! Given his own reputation, only a moron or a sadist would send a straight man on a mission like this. 

"So who was in charge then of this so-called mission?" 

"Major Rice."  

Mars drew in his breath sharply. For the first time, he considered that Conn might be telling the truth, about the nanobots at any rate. He knew Rice hated him enough that he would think nothing of sacrificing one of his young officers to nail him.  

"Why, do you know him?" Conn had caught his reaction. 

Mars gave a short bark of laughter. "You could say that! He's the man I stole the Zeron from, when he was a captain and the ship was still the Ebano! He hates my guts." 

He tore his eyes away from Conn's sudden understanding, and glared at the pale virgin ass in front of him, exposed and vulnerable. He felt a fresh rush of hot anger throughout his whole body, except this time it was against Rice for setting them both up, against Conn for letting himself be persuaded to take the risk, and against himself for letting this man get far too close.  

He knew if he went ahead and raped Conn, he would break him, perhaps irretrievably. For the first time, he realised he might break himself as well.  

He betrayed me, he deserves everything he gets, Mars tried to convince himself.  

Who was he kidding? He couldn't do this. He had to get out. Without a word, Mars turned on his heel and strode out of the room.