Star Guardian: A Space Opera Adventure (Star Guardians Book 1) by G J Ogden

Author:G J Ogden [Ogden, G J]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Publisher: Ogden Media Ltd
Published: 2022-09-07T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER

EIGHTEEN

THE PUNCH ROADHOUSE

Hudson placed the last of the relics that he and Tory had scavenged from the Revocater wreck onto the conveyer then stepped up to the gate of the Shaak body scanner. Tory was already in position, waiting for the Relic Guardian Force officer to wave her through. Another RGF officer sat at a computer terminal, watching the scan readout of the items that were trundling along the belt, like a luggage x-ray machine at an airport.

“Okay, madam, you can come through now,” said the RGF officer at the gate, lazily waving a hand-held scan module at Tory.

Tory walked through the gate and immediately the frame of the device turned red, accompanied by an urgent series of bleeps. Hudson heard his partner sigh loudly.

“Raise your arms,” the RGF officer grunted.

Tory obliged and the officer began to sweep the hand-held device around her body. The man reached Tory’s right jacket pocket and the scanner warbled like a badly-played harmonica.

The RGF officer rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Turn out your pockets.”

“Say please,” Tory replied, making her irritation and displeasure at the situation plain.

“Please turn out your pockets…” the officer said, though his tone was no less apathetic than Tory’s had been.

Sighing audibly again, Tory slid her hand into her right jacket pocket and removed a low-grade CPU shard.

“Oops, how did that get in there?” Tory said, blithely feigning ignorance.

“You know the rules madam; I’ll have to confiscate this,” said the RGF officer. A smile then curled the man’s lips as he slid the low-grade shard into his own pocket.

“You’re just going to do that right in front of me and everyone else?” Tory said. Hudson could see that her right hand was now twitching beside the grip of her Schofield revolver

“Do what, madam?” the RGF officer replied, feigning ignorance just as Tory had done moments earlier. “Did you see anything, Officer Hooper?” the man added, turning to his partner at the scanning terminal.

“I didn’t see a thing, Officer Dawson,” the second man replied, also wearing a telling smile.

“You bastards never change, do you?” Tory snarled. “You’re nothing but petty crooks using the badge and uniform to rip people off.”

The expression on Officer Dawson’s face hardened. “I’d watch your tone, madam,” he said, speaking the words with venom. “I can easily impound the rest of your score, and make sure you don’t see a single credit of it for months.”

Hudson couldn’t see Tory’s face, but he imagined the look she was giving the RGF officer in that moment. And although he had more reason than most to despise the Relic Guardian Force, he wouldn’t wish the consequences of unleashing an irate Tory Bellona on anyone.

“Are we done, officer?” said Tory, her fingers still flickering beside her revolver.

“Maybe I should frisk you, just to make sure you’re not hiding anything else in that relic hunting gear,” Dawson replied, his eyes washing over Tory’s body.

Hudson clenched his teeth together. Ordinarily, even the mere suggestion of anyone ‘frisking’ Tory would result in that person being knocked unconscious.

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