His men left and Stag stared at the woman. “You’re very brave.”

“That’s not the word I’d go with.” She glanced down her body. “I look like I belong in one of those bondage clubs located on Mars. I would have shaved my legs this morning if I’d known.”

Stag examined her body.

“Eyes up here, gorgeous,” she murmured. “You don’t need to verify that. It was a bad joke.”

He held her gaze.

“I guess I should be thankful you’re not human. Most men would have come at me looking like this and set off the bombs.” She smiled. “Those Markus models would have been able to steal my cargo, since it’s on the other side of the ship sealed in the hold, and still gotten me killed. That would have pissed me off.”

“Why did you call me that?”

“Gorgeous? Because you are. You’ve got beautiful black hair and those blue eyes. It gets lonely in space. My father always hired the crew, and not one of them was much to look at or sexually appealing. He did that on purpose.” She tried to wiggle her body a little but the bonds held her too tight. “God, this is unpleasant. It feels like I’ve been turned into a wishbone.”

“Stop fighting and loosen your muscles. It will hurt less.”

“Been strung up much?”

“A few times in the past,” he admitted.

“Why would someone do that to you? All they’d have to do is shut you down if they wanted you in one place.”

She believed he was an android. He wasn’t surprised by her assumption. “I have no shutoff function. It was punishment. They whipped us.”

“Why would anyone pay that kind of money and then damage something like you?” She shook her head. “A guy must have owned you, and his wife probably wished you were upgraded with the right equipment to be in her bedroom. Did he take it out on you? You’re really handsome.” She ran her gaze over his body. “Nice measurement designs too. My father said some of you were used for sex bots way back when. I can see why. Hell, I’d buy you if I’d ever seen you in one of the sex-bot ads.”

His temper flared. “You’d buy me to have sex with you?”

“I’m trying to distract myself from the pain.” She rolled her head, looking away from him, and fought the restraints. “Please blow the ship. This is agony.”

“I’m not an android.”

She stopped moving, staring at him. “You’re a cyborg. Sorry. Do you differentiate yourself from them? I heard you were programmed with some mimicked emotions. I didn’t mean to insult you. Don’t get your circuits overloaded. I’m just having a shit day and I’m ready for it to be over. My father is dead and so is my crew. It’s also irritating that something that looks like you is standing in my bedroom under these dire circumstances. Talk about irony.”

“Explain.”

“I’m naked and restrained, you’re like sex on legs, though you don’t have the right equipment or the programming to touch me. Plus, the whole big boom if you climb on the bed to reach me. See where this is heading? I’m fucked but not in the fun way.”

His temper flared more. She’d buy him to have sex with her and she didn’t believe he was a sentient being. It proved his point that all Earthers were the same. He watched her struggle in the restraints, her hair shifting to reveal her nipples. She did have a beautiful body. The blood marring her skin didn’t appear to be hers.

“Do you need orders to go?” She looked at him. “Go. Take the cargo if you can use it somehow. You can’t save me, if you have some program that tells you to try. Disregard it. Get off the ship and blow it to hell.”

He suddenly didn’t want her to die. He wanted to keep her alive. He stared at the bed. “How did they rig the bomb?”

“What?”

“How did they rig it? You said you saw them do it.”

“They pulled the covers off the top and cut into the mattress. It’s too complicated for you. You’re an old model. Just go. That’s an order.”

He approached the bed and pulled back the covers, making certain they remained on top of the mattress. He saw where they’d opened the mattress, the devise exposed to his view.

“Listen,” she demanded. “Back away from the bed. You’re going to blow us both up and those dickhead skin android things are going to get the cargo. Fuck that. They killed me and my crew. I’m already toast. Get off the ship and blow it!”

He leaned forward, studying the device. It was complicated. He removed his com and contacted Veller. “Return to the captain’s quarters now.”

“Hey, gorgeous face?”

He looked up at her, infuriated. “My name is Stag.”

“Abort your rescue mission. It’s doomed to fail. Do you understand? I’m giving you a direct order. I know they discontinued your models because there was some kind of problem with you guys taking orders, but you have to be smart. You escaped Earth before they shut all your models down. Leave this ship before the bed blows. Do you understand?”

He glared at her.

She glared back. “Abort. Stop. What word triggers you to do what you’re told?”

“Say ‘please’.”

That response seemed to surprise her but she recovered fast. “Please take orders. Get off this ship and blow it up.”

He gave her a cold stare. “I’m not a robot or an android.”

“I don’t care what the hell you are. You want reasoning and logic? I know my androids appreciate that. There’s no way to get me off these posts without blowing a big hole into the side of the ship. It will decompress this entire section and suck everything into space. Those fucked-up flesh bot things will return and take my cargo. They win! I don’t want that. I want them to return to find out they did all this for nothing! Do you get that?”

“I do. I fully plan to make certain they return to nothing.”

“Good. Go.”

Veller entered the room. “What is it?”

He stepped out of the way. “Look at this. Can you disarm it?”

Veller came forward, bent, careful not to touch the bed. “I know this.”

“Good. Can you disarm it?”

“No, but Hellion can.”

“Are you certain?”