TO HAVE AND TO HOLD UP:

It was straight out of a movie... The red headed woman, sometimes known as Saffron, lingered in the doorway for a moment, her eyes level under a provocatively fallen strand of hair. She was cool. In this heat warped flea ridden shack of a border hotel – she was the only thing that was. Everything else around her just – sweated.

Her voice, of course, was low – reaching out to the man before her like a lasciviously beckoning finger.

“Well then Captain…” she breathed, “if there’s anything you need – anything at all... I’ll be just across the hall.” She raised an eyebrow – it was like the tugging of a leash – “if you – want me… just whistle…”

Her lips flickered.

“You know how to whistle, don’t you Mal…? You just put your lips together and…” There was a sensual pause. She broke it – crudely. “Gun HOE-tze bee DIO-se!!!” And, with unexpected violence, slammed the door shut on Malcolm Reynolds..

Well now... whoo! Thought Mal, tutting – and there was surely no call to get so mean mouthed about it. Pretty sure I never conceived of doing that with a monkey before. The bed beneath him creaked as he sat back on its edge – placing the gun he had been holding carefully on the dresser next to it. But Gorram! That woman – he shoulda said something at least in reply, she needed a serious Reynolds education… and he had said nothing. How was it that she always managed to – and of all the people in the ‘verse – to be able to...

Slowly he turned to face the anger of his own face in the grimy dresser mirror. But he sat back sharply. No....! There had been – GorrAM it! – a smile on his face.

How in the halls of Hell? How did she – he had to think – and think fast – this wasn’t right – this had be some sorta, y’know, hypno drug induced feminine wiles enhancing seduction perfume at work – and it was probably poison at that. He needed the Doc’ but quickly – if the Tam boy couldn’t get here in time then surely – this could be fatal – this could be-

fun???