The real story
From first page Bantam paperback July 1992:

Angus Thermopyle was an ore pirate and a murderer; even the most disreputable asteroid pilots of Delta Sector stayed out of his way.  Those who didn't ended up in the lockup -- or dead.  But when Thermopyle arrived at Mallorys Bar & Sleep with a gorgeous woman by his side the regulars had to take notice.  Her name was Morn Hyland, and she had been a police officer -- until she met up with Thermopyle.

But one person in Mallorys Bar wasn't intimidated.  Nick Succorso had his own reputation as a bold pirate and he had a sleek frigate fitted for deep space.  Everyone knew that Thermopyle and Succorso were on a collision course.  What nobody expected was how quickly it would all be over -- or how devastating the victory would be.  It was a common enough example of rivalry and revenge -- or so everyone thought.  The *real* story was something entirely different....
Science fiction
Stephen R. Donaldson