Journey To Nowhere: The Landrys, #1

By Monika Smith

In a case of mistaken identity, Elizabeth Moss - Bess - finds herself as a captive on the space ship of gorgeously handsome bounty hunter, Daniel Landry. With no memory of who she is, she learns that she was framed by Naydien Huisamen, for crimes she did not commit. Daniel Landry makes her weak in the knees, but he despises her, believing her to be a criminal mastermind. Space pirate, Tomas Salvinski, under the direction of Naydien Huisamen, steals Bess away from the Landrys, in order to claim the bounty on her. The chase is on: Daniel crosses the known universe, in his efforts to save Bess from the pirates. Will he get to her in time?

63,265 words of a thrilling romance novel.

The first in a series of 3.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Monika Smith
• Release date: Jul 22, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223018865

Book preview

Chapter 1

Darkness. Light. Darkness. Light. Darkness...

Ohh, ouch! Headache, She risks opening her eyes once more. This time only peeping out. Too much light! She shuts her eyes abruptly and tries to put her right hand over her face, but her arm skids to an abrupt halt. What the heck? She opens one eye again and lifts her head slightly. Her arm can rise a total of 5 centimeters. Waves of pain assail her poor head, and she lowers it. A firm, solid surface is beneath her. She tries to get up, but realizes that she is stuck to the surface, like a fly on one of those glue spirals hanging from the ceiling in her gran's farm kitchen.

Breathe. Take it easy. Use your brain. It serves no purpose to panic. Oh dear, she thinks. Gran always said only crazy people talk to themselves. Have I lost it?

She breathes deeply for a while. Her monstrous headache subsides by a fraction. She dares another open eye and the light is not as harsh this time. Lying on her back, she studies a formless ceiling. No clues there. Ditto the walls. Shapeless, grey and smooth, except for the square push panels. She lifts her head and gasps as she notices the wide, silver bracelets encircling both her wrists. Her ankles are similarly adorned. She tries to jerk herself loose, but the furthest she can move is 5 centimeters from the platform beneath her. The harder she pulls, the more resistance she encounters, as if she is moving through treacle. Houston, I think we have a problem. I have been kidnapped and I am caught in what seems to be a magnetic field and...I...I...think I can't remember who I am. She licks her dry lips. Think, think, think! What do I know? I have a gran who lives on a farm and... I'm afraid that's it. Nothing more. She starts hyperventilating. Panic overwhelms her. She jerks her hands to and fro and kicks with her feet.

Help! Help me! Somebody? Her heart is beating a mile a minute and the close-fitting ship's uniform she is wearing is drenched with sweat. Tired out, she falls asleep.

––––––––

It is the year 2052. The Earth is devastated. Uninhabitable. Radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, hit in the tsunami of March 11, 2011, contaminated

all of the Earth's oceans with radioactive cesium. In 2020, scientists announced that the oxygen in the atmosphere will decrease rapidly. The inhabitants of Earth had to look for alternative solutions. By the year 2030, roughly 80% of life in the oceans were obliterated by the contaminated water from Fukushima, which had been leaking into the ocean non-stop. Without plankton, which supplied about 70% of the Earth's oxygen, land animals and many plants started going extinct. A very rare, newly discovered mineral, Mesosideritium, made commercial space travel possible, by supplying a means of propulsion. The Planetary Alliance was established, in order to look for new inhabitable planets. Mathematicians at NASA proved that wormholes exist and found the position of the first one. Space explorers used the wormholes to find new planets. The first of eleven inhabitable planets were found in 2022. The 500 million people left, after all the disasters on Earth, all found new homes on one of the new planets by 2035. The Alliance ships made multiple trips, to evacuate all who wanted to leave the planet. Some hold-outs elected to stay behind, to take their chances on the dying planet.

––––––––

48 hours ago, on the planet Eden.

Elizabeth Moss, who prefers to be called Bess, gets a reminder from her personal holographic screen, about an appointment for the next day. She types on a keyboard, projected in front of her, to confirm her attendance. Her abode in the city of Paradise spans the whole top floor of a block of flats.

––––––––

Simultaneously, 48 hours ago, on the spaceship, Sofia.

The ship Sofia appears from the end of a wormhole, 6 hours' travel from the planet Eden. The vessel is propelled between wormholes by FasterThanLight engines, or FTL engines, using Mesosideritium at its core. Demand still outstrips supply for the mineral, which is the only way to power the FTL engines. Mesosideritium is sublimated during flight. Space ships are unfortunately still reliant on rocket propulsion to travel the relatively small distances between wormholes.

Sofia, display Eden on the screen, please, asks Daniel Landry. At 32, the eldest of the 3 Landry siblings on the ship. They are close enough to the planet now, and he had recovered a bit since the ordeal of travelling through the wormhole. Daniel experiences transient nausea and vertigo after each worm.

A 3-dimensional image of the planet takes shape on the main holographic screen.

The planet is as green as a first year student, says Nick. He is 4 years younger than his big brother, Daniel.

Thick, verdant jungle is broken up in places by glistening fresh-water lakes.

You can wake Anandee. We should be there in about an hour. Remember to duck, says Daniel.

Nick leaves the bridge to wake their little sister, who just turned 19.

The artificial intelligence, or AI ship, Sofia, controls all aspects of the spaceship. She is able to do complicated calculations and steer the ship, without direct input from the crew.

Sofia, would you get authorization to land at Eden spaceport in Paradise? asks Daniel.

Eden spaceport, this is the Spaceship Sofia, home planet, Moa. We request to land on Eden, asks Sofia.

Eden, Paradise spaceport here. Authorization to land, granted to the Spaceship Sofia. Go ahead and land on strip 2B, berth 31.

Thank you, Eden spaceport, acknowledged. Over and out, replies Sofia.

Sofia calculates the landing trajectory and sets down with ease. The 3 Landrys loosen their safety harnesses and get up. Sofia opens the outside hatch and lowers the walkway. They disembark and go directly to customs. Customs consists of a meter high pillar, with a sensor. Daniel, Nick and Anandee present their identity bracelets to the pillar. Their information is read from the bracelets and that is the sum total of the formalities. Sofia retracts the walkway and closes the outside hatch, but not soon enough. A tiny stow-away slips on board. The small entity glances around nervously in the entryway and proceeds to jog down the passage to nip in at the first open doorway.

––––––––

Sofia took the liberty to reserve rooms at a hotel and the 3 Landrys alight onto the moving sidewalk, to convey them to the nearest tube station. The tubes are rapid transit devices and terminals are placed on all the busiest hubs in the city. At the tube terminal, they scan their bracelets, and the AI takes them straight to the hotel. Moments after they fastened their seat belts, they sail through the transparent tube and within minutes they land at the hotel terminal.

A pillar with a sensor is present at the hotel entrance. They take turns to scan their bracelets and the hotel AI programs their room numbers and access codes onto the bracelets. Some people prefer dealing with a real person, so a receptionist is available for those who do not want to do the AI thing.

After entering their rooms, a long shower or bath is top of their agenda. Spaceships carry very little water, only used for drinking, cooking and hand washing.

Daniel's very important appointment for the next day is the reason for their visit to Eden. He lies awake for most of the night, thinking about the meeting. Hopefully all goes well. There is too much at stake, for him to mess up now.

––––––––

The planet Eden.

The next morning, Bess wiggles her wrist to activate her identity bracelet. She needs to see what time it is.

Oh, my goodness! I need to be at the coffee shop in ten minutes. I'm cutting it fine, as per usual. She applies her lipstick and takes a last look in the full length mirror, to see if everything is perfect. She nods to herself, satisfied that everything is as it should be. She grabs her new lilac handbag, bought to match her knee length dress. The white sleeveless dress, adorned with huge purple roses fits closely around her upper body and the full skirt, made of soft draping material accentuates her slim body.

I hope I find Mr. Right this time. How many frogs does a girl have to kiss, to find her prince? Bess is so used to talking to herself that she hardly notices it any more. She closes the door behind her and waits for the lift to arrive. She smooths down her light brown shoulder length hair. A sigh escapes, before she can stop herself.

Why do I always get Mr. Wrong? I am a grown woman, of 29. Mr. Right is long overdue, if you ask me. The doors to the lift open and before the AI can even ask, she says: Ground floor, please. She watches as the numbers rapidly decline from 72 to 0. The doors open soundlessly and within moments she mounts the moving sidewalk, taking her to a popular and charming retro coffee shop, where she is set to meet her frog/prince.

The Central Artificial Intelligence unit of the Planetary Alliance issues every citizen with a bracelet, on which all their information is stored: DNA, identity, banking details with all their credits and planet of origin, to name only some. The bracelets replaced cellular telephones and computers. People balked at having implanted technology in their hands or foreheads, so the bracelets were a good alternative. Only a few workers of a specialized unit in the Planetary Alliance are authorized and able to remove any bracelets. If requested, the AI uses the DNA profiles of singletons to look for suitable life mates. The candidates can meet one another, to see if they hit it off. The system is not infallible, and a clever hacker could tamper with the results.

All three of Bess's previous dates were frogs, but she has a good feeling about this one, number four. She arrives at the coffee shop and pushes open the old fashioned glass door to enter. A yellow brass bell, attached to the top of the door announces her entrance. The decor is so 2020 and she adores it. A bit before her time, though, but she remembers the look of the era from photos in her gran's photo albums. Brightly coloured triangular flags on strings criss-cross the room. Painted wooden planks are decorated with chickens, donkeys, proteas and windmills, made of wire, are dotted around the walls of the shop. The square wooden whitewashed tables have red, white and navy gingham table cloths covering them. Red lamp shades and chairs with dark blue vinyl covered seats, match the table cloths.

Good day. Table for one? asks the waitress.

Bess glances around to see if she can spot her long awaited prince.

Umm, no. For two. She blushes to match the lamp shades.

The waitress lifts her eyebrows and shows Bess to an open table, in the middle of the room. It feels as if all eyes are on her. Bess slides gingerly onto the old fashioned chair. A pang of longing for her gran, Lizzie hits out of nowhere. Her farm kitchen had a huge melamine table and odd chairs, which got harder beneath your butt after hours spent socializing.

These days, everything is controlled by AI. You key in your order on a holographic screen and a 3-D food printer manufactures your dish and delivers it to a pick up terminal. No wait staff needed. Only retro places like this one use real wait staff and menus printed on real paper. The fancy, expensive places still spend credits on real waiters and waitresses and chefs, but the privilege costs you a pretty penny. Bess is one of the few people who misses contact with real people. The majority of citizens live online in a virtual world and may not see another living person for weeks on end. Bess studies the porcelain cup, filled with old fashioned paper sugar sachets and reads some of the slogans printed on the reverse side. The glass and metal salt and pepper shakers and the bottle of tomato sauce transport her back to Earth - to her childhood. She studies the other patrons in the coffee shop and notices that she is one of the few young people present. The older generations also miss human contact. The waitress plops two menus onto the table and Bess reads her name plate: Laruche.

The door bell chimes and Bess glances in its direction. She inhales sharply and stares into a pair of cobalt blue eyes. The gorgeous man halts all of her brain functions. She realizes that she is staring and glances around her, to see if he really is looking at her and not somebody else. Nope, he is looking directly at her. She hardly bats an eyelid while he glides in her direction, as if in slow motion, like in the movies. Her brain is still off line.

Elizabeth? He smiles and the man's score out of ten, rises to full marks.

Totally out of my league, Bess manages to think at last.

Yes, it's me, she answers.

Laruche can't reach their table quickly enough, taking small mincing steps.

I am so glad I am sitting down, Bess thinks. My knees would have given way when he flashed his 1000 watt smile.

He pulls out a chair and sits down. Two filter coffees, please. His voice flows like honey.

Laruche bats her eyelashes and cools herself down with her note pad.

He is used to having this effect on the ladies. It irritates him endlessly when they fall over themselves like this, but he keeps his smile fixed in place. That is, if Elizabeth hadn't ordered already.

Laruche nods and walks in reverse, to the ordering terminal, to keep him in sight for as long as possible. Bess can't blame her, she herself is still struggling to remember how to breathe properly. Bess tries to avoid looking at the man, he is so handsome, she is totally unnerved by his looks. After what feels like an eternity, Laruche brings the coffee and a small scanner, for the payment. He scans his bracelet and Laruche walks in reverse again, the little tart.

Do you take sugar? He offers her two paper packets.

She nods and tears open the sachets, stirs much too long. Bess still looks everywhere but at him and pours too much milk into the mug. What is worse, she does not even like milk in her coffee! She takes a big gulp and some of the fluid lands in her wind pipe. A very un-ladylike coughing fit ensues, and she turns the colour of the lamp shades once again. Is it only her, or is it hot in here? Another big gulp of coffee gets rid of the itch in her throat. She catches those amazing eyes by mistake and sees a halo around his head. Halo? She feels strange and little stars frolic before her eyes, like when you are about to pass out. Her head nods forward, but before she can slide off her chair, the agile man catches her, so that she avoids falling on the floor. Her eyes drift shut, and he picks her up in his strong arms. Her head rests against his firm chest. She wonders how she managed to do that so soon. There is a buzzing in her ears and the stars multiply, so that she is unable to see anything else. Her last thought is: So, this is what it feels like to pass out, I'll die of shame! After that, she knows nothing more.

The man carries her between the tables and announces: She is not feeling well and with a last probably low blood pressure thrown over his shoulder, he carries her out of the shop. He bumps her head against the door post by accident, in his haste to exit. Oops! Sorry.

Bess is out cold already and mercifully feels no pain from the impact.

––––––––

24 hours later, on the spaceship Sofia.

Bess awakens in the same grey room and her headache of earlier has subsided a great deal. She tests the resistance of the silver cuffs once again, with the same results as before. The magnetic field is still in place. She becomes aware of a low rumbling noise and feels a slight vibration in her body.

What is this place? she asks aloud. Where am I? and more importantly: Who am I?

She turns her head sharply to the right. Big mistake. A shooting pain lances through her head, just above her left eye. She can't pay any attention to the pain now, because an oval opening appeared in the wall. A gruff, angry looking man with a fierce scowl and amazing blue eyes enters the room and the door slides shut behind him with a faint whooshing sound. He takes a stance at the far end of the platform she is lying on and folds his arms. Bess is fascinated with his muscular upper arms.

So, you are awake. He glares at her. By this time, you should feel very uncomfortable, lying on your back for so long. But a hardened criminal like you deserves no mercy, he says. Daniel sees the enormous blue bump above her left eye, where he hit her head the other day, while leaving the coffee shop. He feels a little guilty about it. He did not mean to hurt her.

I'll adjust the magnetic bands, so that you can get up. You may have noticed that you cannot make any sudden moves. The bands are designed to give more resistance then. He opens a holographic screen in front of him and types on it. She sits up gingerly and a few of those pesky little stars dance before her eyes again, but vanish quickly.

The bathroom is behind me. You press on the panel next to the door to open it. The cabin door is set to respond only to the crew. Prisoners can only activate the bathroom door.

C-c-cabin? Bess stutters.

Yes, you are on the spaceship Sofia. We are bounty hunters, and we are on our way to deliver you to Nowhere.

N-N-Nowhere?

We have been hunting you for six months. The bounty on your head will pay off the debt on our spaceship and we need not work for the next year at least.

B-b-bounty?

I was unaware of the fact that you stutter, but yes, a massive bounty on the head of the most wanted criminal in the whole of the Planetary Alliance.

B-b-but...

No, I am not interested in any of your lies. He speaks over her objection. We deliver you to Nowhere, receive our credits and then it is sun, sea and relaxation for the foreseeable future.

He looks at her