Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 105936 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 530(@200wpm)___ 424(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105936 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 530(@200wpm)___ 424(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
He shot me a narrow-eyed glance but rose from the navigator’s chair, which he had pushed Cass out of earlier. The boy was really going to have to learn to defend himself or he wasn’t going to make it, I thought grimly.
I kept a rough crew aboard The Illyrian—you can’t have a bunch of pacifists on board when you’re a smuggling ship. Besides, there are plenty of dangers out in open space. I’ve had to fight my way out of bad situations before and I need males behind me that can get my back. So my crew isn’t exactly the nicest bunch.
I did try to make sure they were presentable though—which fucking Gurflug absolutely was not.
“Navigator Cass, take the chair and plot our next jump,” I said. I threw the boy my clean-all rag as I spoke so he could wipe off the nav band. That alone was a reason Gurflug needed to shower—he was getting the expensive navigation equipment all greasy and slimy. I didn’t have room in my budget this run to replace the delicate nav band if it got clogged up and ruined.
I stepped into my ready room with Gurflug and waited until the door slid shut behind us. A good leader praises in public and corrects in private—in this case, there was a lot to correct.
The minute we were in an enclosed space together, I noticed his odor all over again. Goddess above, the male smelled rancid! I had to fight not to cover my nose with my hand.
“Yes, Captain? You wanted to see me?” he burbled.
“Exactly—I wanted to see you—not smell you,” I said, getting right to the point. “There have been some complaints about your odor, Gurflug.”
He flushed, a muddy brown color rising to his greenish cheeks.
“Has that little snot been talking about me behind my back?”
“If you mean Cass, no. He hasn’t said anything to me,” I said. “Several other crew members have though—mainly those that have to sit by you in the mess hall. I thought I made it clear about the mandatory shower time we have aboard The Illyrian.”
“I attended the shower time,” he protested. “I was there in the shower room—ask anyone!”
“You don’t look or smell like you showered,” I pointed out. “And your uniform is a disgrace. Why is it crumpled and stained already when you just got it yesterday?” I nodded at what looked like spilled juice on his shirt and the smears of dark purple tilberry jam on his white cuffs.
Gurflug’s face grew darker.
“That’s not my fault! It’s too crowded in the mess hall! Someone spilled juice on me.”
“And I suppose that same person dragged your cuffs through the food on your tray and got crumbs all over your shirt too?” I asked, raising my eyebrows.
“They—” he began, but I was sick of his excuses.
“I’m going to order you to leave the bridge right now and throw your uniform in the steam-cleaner at once,” I told him. “And tonight you’ll take a proper shower and actually get clean.”
“But I am clean—as clean as a Galafruxian is meant to be. Our slime—”
“Is not welcome aboard my ship and especially not all over The Illyrian’s navigation equipment,” I finished for him crisply. “Now go get your uniform cleaned.”
Gurflug’s eyes bulged angrily.
“Excuse me, Captain, but that shouldn’t be my job.”
I raised my eyebrows in disbelief.
“It shouldn’t be your job to keep yourself clean?”
“I’m talking about my uniform,” Gurflug protested. “On other ships I’ve worked on, the navigator’s uniform is cleaned for him every night. Why not have the cabin boy do it?”
“Snuffy has a lot of responsibilities but keeping track of your uniform is not one of them,” I told him.
“It should be,” Gurflug argued. “And another thing—the cook—Cookie, I believe his name is—has outright refused my menu request for Galafruxian slime stew.”
I couldn’t fucking believe his entitlement. I wanted to bare my fangs but I held myself back.
“So now you’re asking the cook to make you a whole separate menu?”
“Not at all—I’m sure the rest of the crew would enjoy it as well. It’s extremely delicious and nutritious,” he said loftily. “I have the recipe which I’ll be happy to provide to him as soon as you have a talk with him.”
“I’m not asking Cookie to make something special just for you,” I growled. At this point I was barely holding on to my temper. I’d always heard that Galafruxians could be prima donnas but this was getting completely out of hand!
“This is ridiculous!” Gurflug exclaimed. “I am the navigator aboard this ship. Without me, you’re not going anywhere!”
“So you think that means the entire crew should cater to your every whim, is that it?” I asked, keeping my temper in check by the thinnest of margins.
“Well…yes.” He nodded firmly. “The ship’s navigator is arguably the most important crew member on board.”