The Story of Candy Apple - Android
Page 23

   The captain of the Galactic Enterprise was not about to waste the space that might be used by a human on an android, and he told her so in no uncertain terms. “Captain Taylor is not going to bend, Candy,” Jack said when they got back to his quarters. “As much as I would like to, I can’t let you use our guest room for more than a day or two. I would be abusing my authority as commander of the Starfighters if I did.”
   “Jack, lay down on the floor,” Candy said.
   “What are you going to do?” he asked.
   “Lie face down on the floor, and you’ll see.”
   Jack had an adventurous streak to him, and so he followed Candy’s instructions. He was rewarded with one of the best massages he ever had in his life. There was nothing sexual about it, but he felt invigorated in every part of his body once Candy had finished with him. “Normally, on Earth, I can get about $500 to $1000 an hour if I throw in a little sex as well,” Candy said as he sat up. “Do you think that I can charge $100 an hour here for what I just did to you without having to throw in any sex too?”
   “It seems a little cheap for a professional masseuse, but I don’t see why not,” Jack replied.
   “If you can’t get me a room, can you get me a padded table about your height?
   Jack introduced Candy to the chief engineer; one massage later she had her table custom-built by the end of the day. Four days later she caught up with the captain. “How much to rent a room?” she asked.
   Captain William Jefferson Taylor was not one to change his mind once he set a course. “I told you I’m not going to give you a room,” he said sternly.
   “That is not what I asked,” Candy said. “How much for a stateroom?”
   The captain frowned at the android blocking his path. “Two hundred a day, for a small one,” he replied more than a bit annoyed by the android blocking his path.
   Candy counted out six thousand dollars and handed it to the captain. “That should be good for about a month,” Candy said. “Have someone come get me when my room is ready.”

   William walked into Colonel Jack Stryker’s office. “You put her up to this. Take your money back, Jack,” William said angrily as he slapped a stack of cash down on the colonel’s desk.
   The commander of the Starfighters just calmly pushed the stack of money back toward the captain. “It's not my money, Bill,” he said. “Candy is a one of a kind, and I hesitate to use the term android. She is headstrong and incredibly resourceful.”
   “You like her.” It was a statement of fact.
   “I like her a lot, but that doesn’t change the fact that the money is hers,” Jack said tapping on the stack of cash. “My advice to you is to give her a job and a room because anyone who can start with nothing, not even clothes, and make the kind of money she has made in the last four days is worth their weight in gold.”
   “Do I even want to know how she made this money?” William asked.
   “It’s all good money, Bill,” Jack replied. “Nothing you’d be ashamed of even if she was your own daughter.”
   Jack watched as stars danced in Candy's eyes as he showed her the stateroom where she would be staying. Candy wished she could cry she was so happy. She had a real job and a place to stay that was all hers. She was truly free at last.