Mitchell's Revenge

Snatch Upp tried desperately to relax. He sat facing Natasha Orlov across a broad Perspex desk. He knew that asking for a job with the IGM was not necessarily his greatest career move. But he didn’t have a lot of choice after leaving the Guardian Angel. The moon’s security people made it quite clear that he couldn’t stay unless he was gainfully employed. And the only other person he knew was Natasha.

Natasha leaned back in her comfortable chair and studied him. PB was curled in his basket at her feet. She steepled her fingers together in front of her. Snatch was small and powerfully built. She’d watched him respond to emergency situations aboard the Guardian Angel and developed a grudging respect for him. He never complained, except when Grabb was deliberately taunting him. And she could relate to that. Snatch might just be an asset to the IGM.

“You realise that if you join us there’s no going back,” she said.

Snatch’s eyes grew wide as he considered the implications of this. “So once I’m in, I can’t ever leave.”

“That’s about the sum of it,” Natasha agreed. “It’s a way of life. You have to surrender yourself to it. The only way out is death. We won’t have ex-IGM employees running around the galaxy passing on what they know about us. It’s one of the few ways we have to protect ourselves. And if you cross us, you will die anyway.”

“Well, I don’t want to be a pirate any more. And I’d like to stop travelling for a while. Stay in one place for a bit. I think I might like it here. Or on EQ2.” Natasha smiled at him.

“You are uniquely qualified to work for us, you know. You’ve been a pirate, you’re young, strong and fit. You’re not afraid to break the law and then stay away from it. I can only go by what I observed on board the Angel, so you might like to tell me a bit more about yourself,” she smiled encouragingly at him.

“What were you doing before you joined the Angel?”

Snatch shifted in his chair and looked embarrassed. He glanced at Natasha.

“Running away from an irate spouse,” he said. His hands suddenly became very interesting to him.

“What exactly do you mean?” asked Natasha, a smile starting to creep across her face.

“I used to be a personal trainer,” Snatch continued. “I had a fling with the partner of one of my clients and she found out about it.” Natasha started to laugh.

“Another man! I’d never have picked you to play on the same side!” she exclaimed.

Snatch screwed up his face as if he had just tasted something unpleasant. “No, no. It was a woman. The women were partners. Which made it even worse because she cheated with a man.”

“Good grief! No wonder you ran away. Which planet were you on?”

“Menageron,” replied Snatch. “I was raised on a farm there. I’m actually very good with all kinds of animals. That was before I became a PT.”

“How did you come to join the Guardian Angel then?”

“I’d got as far as Standing Point refuelling hub and I was running out of options. The Angel was refuelling and I joined them there. They were looking for another crew member. I was young and naive. I didn’t know what I was getting into. But it got me far away from my client. She didn’t follow me into space, thank God.”

“So what do you think you can offer the IGM?”

Snatch considered this for a few moments. “I’d probably be quite useful here at the sports arena, with my fitness background,” he said. “And as I said, I’m good with animals, so hockey players shouldn’t pose too many problems.” He grinned at Natasha.

“I learn fast, I’m very adaptable,” he continued. “I know how to keep my mouth shut. I can follow orders. And I have no desire to rejoin the crew of The Guardian Angel. Grabb Nufsten is an absolute pain in the arse to work with.”

Natasha laughed heartily in response. “You are absolutely right about that. He made a very inappropriate gesture towards me, so I threatened to kill him.” She nodded with satisfaction at the memory of pinning Grabb to the wall and almost choking him to death.

“I got the impression that you can be dangerous to be around.”

“Compared to my father, I’m a teddy bear!” she said, laughing again. She decided she liked this straightforward young man. “Let me think about what we could offer you. How long do you have before they make you go to EQ2?”

“Five more days.”

“Alright, come back and see me in two days. And you think carefully about what you’re doing. I suggest you visit the local library and read up about the IGM. There’ll be enough public information there that might frighten you into changing your mind. Either way, come back in two days. I’ll have an answer for you then.”

She stood up. Snatch did the same. He extended his hand across the desk and she surprised him by shaking it firmly.

“Thank you,” he said. He turned and left her office.

Natasha sat down again and PB jumped up onto her lap. She patted the little dogs’ head absentmindedly as she thought about Snatch and the options she had to employ him. This was too good to pass up. She decided she’d talk to her father. Yuri might be able to help her make up her mind.