At Star's End, page 6
“No.” She waited until those aquamarine eyes met hers. “You just jump into life. Take risks I would never even dream about. I like to measure things, mull them over. I don’t leap.”
He was silent, his eyes considering. “I think I’m all better, Doc.”
She straightened. “Right.”
“But feel free to keep looking. I like it when you look at me.”
Her gaze snapped to his face. “Women look at you all the time. Like Ms. I’ll-tell-you-your-destiny.”
“Yeah, but I’ve never really cared that much if they did or not.”
They stared at each other and Eos felt every hard thud of her heart.
He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Scared the hell out of me when I saw Darc dragging you into that building.”
“Scared me too.” She looked at the floor. “Took me back to when they came for me as a child after my mother died. They dragged me out of bed and took me to an orphanage. I couldn’t take anything.” Nothing of her mother’s, none of her toys or books. “They left me with nothing.”
“Hey.” He tipped her chin up. “The Eos Rai I’ve seen seems to get exactly what she wants. Once you find Star’s End, you’ll be famous. The bigwigs at the Institute’ll trip over themselves to have you back. Everyone in the galaxy will want a piece of you. You’ll have more than you ever dreamed of.”
She nodded. “When Darc took me, I thought you hadn’t noticed.”
“I notice everything about you.” He cleared his throat. “I didn’t want to tip Darc off.”
She shouldn’t feel this jittery, this out of control. “Right.”
“Here.” He slid off the table and for a second they were pressed together. “Let me fix your cut.”
She let him wave the medscope over her wound, although she could have done it herself. “Here we are again, healing wounds.”
“Hazard of the business.”
“I guess you get hurt a lot.” The thought didn’t sit well with her.
“A bit, but not every hunt. Some are downright boring.” He set the scope aside, his gaze tracing her face. “But so far this hunt has been anything but boring.”
“Someone has to keep you on your toes, Phoenix.”
Chapter Six
The scream of alarms jerked Eos out of sleep.
She nearly fell off the narrow bunk in her small cabin on the Infinitas. Pressing one hand to her racing heart, she got up and pulled a shirt over her thin sleeping tank and shorts.
They’d had a day of smooth cruising. She’d almost gotten used to the gentle hum of starship engines and the mesmerizing blur of stars out the window.
Now something was very wrong.
She ran out into the hall, the checker-plate metal floor was cool under her bare feet. She entered the cockpit just as the alarm cut off.
The Phoenix Brothers were already there.
Dathan’s bare chest drew her gaze but when she looked at the angular-shaped cockpit windows, her mouth dropped open. “What the hell is that?”
Neon red spread across in front of them. As far as she could see. It was the color of the royal robes of Windassia.
“The Devil’s Nebula.” Zayn spat the words from the pilot’s seat.
“Fuck.” Dathan slammed a fist against the large screen that formed the command console.
She shifted uneasily. “Didn’t you know it was here?”
Niklas shook his head. “The nebula changes location within the quadrant.”
Zayn scrubbed a hand over his face. “It’s somehow connected to the end of a wormhole. It randomly jumps through space.”
Eos’s gaze moved between them all. Noted the tense faces. “Okay. What aren’t you telling me?”
Zayn looked up. “It’s a wretched hive of scum and villainy.”
She frowned. “What?”
He clapped a hand over his chest. “You don’t know your classics.”
“It’s completely lawless,” Niklas said.
“Every murderer, thief, slave trader and assassin in the quadrant calls it home. They have some sort of homing beacon set up so they can find it when it moves.” Dathan looked at Zayn. “How long to go around?”
“Weeks.”
Eos twisted her hands together. How could something so beautiful be so bad? “You’ve been here before?”
“Once.” Dathan shoved his hands on his hips. “We chased a thief in who’d acquired an artifact we were after. Once was enough.” He flicked a glance at Zayn. “Z came here once before with the Galactic Strike Wing.”
Zayn didn’t say anything, but his jaw was tight. He stared into the red mists like he could see something they couldn’t. The Infinitas shook a little and he tapped the command console with an experienced hand.
“Where do all these thieves and assassins live?” She sensed Dathan come up beside her. She felt like she had an internal radar for his presence.
“There’s a proto-world near the center of the nebula. It’s called Lucifa.” Dathan moved closer to the window, his lean body silhouetted by red. “Souk is home to the white and gray markets. Lucifa is a black-market world. You can buy every kind of illegal weapon, stolen goods, slaves.”
“It’s notorious for its slave market.” Zayn’s frown was vicious. “They deal in trade labor for the mining and manufacturing worlds. But they’re famed for their women. They say you can buy the most beautiful women in the galaxy.”
“All kidnapped off deep space transports and outer rim worlds taken by surprise when the nebula engulfs them,” Dathan added.
Eos pressed a hand to her stomach. Everything in your life torn away in an instant. Your freedom taken in the most unthinkable way. “So we avoid Lucifa.”
“Yeah. But the entire nebula is filled with ships of all size, shapes and agendas. Piloted by crews we really don’t want to run into.”
Eos slumped into one of the seats in two neat rows behind the pilot’s seat. She’d known this trip would be nothing like the Institute’s well-funded digs. But she’d been so focused on Star’s End, she hadn’t truly thought about all the risks.
Had her mother thought them through before she’d left her daughter to head a dangerous mission?
An alarm on the command console went off. Zayn swore. “Hang on.”
The Infinitas pulled into a sharp turn and shuddered. As the boosters ignited, Eos nearly slid off her chair.
Dathan leaned over. “Strap in.” He clipped her straps in, his hard gaze hitting hers.
What she saw there made her shiver.
He sat in the chair beside her. Nik strapped into a chair behind them.
“Z?” Dathan said.
“Ship off the starboard side. Big motherfucker.” He tapped furiously on the screen, like a pianist, his expression the most serious she’d seen on his face. “Gonna try and outrun them.”
“Can you identify them?”
“Not yet.”
Another tight turn pushed Eos hard into her seat. She clutched the armrests. Zayn threw the ship into a sharp dive and Eos’s stomach jumped into her throat. She must have made a noise, because Dathan’s hand clamped over hers. His fingers tangled with hers and his solid grip steadied her.
“Can we fire on them?” Eos asked.
Zayn shook his head. “No.”
Dathan looked grim. “Zayn doesn’t fire on other ships.”
Eos gaped at them. An ex-fighter pilot who wouldn’t fire his weapons? “Even when we’re in trouble—”
“Never.” Zayn’s voice was unyielding.
“Wouldn’t matter anyway,” Niklas said. “We’re outgunned.”
“What about a cloaking device?” Eos said.
Zayn shook his head. “Won’t work in the nebula.”
The cockpit windows filled with the huge bulbous shape of a ship. Fear was like sharp claws sinking into Eos’s belly. It was heavily armored, large laser cannons mounted on the sides.
“Shit.” Dathan’s fingers flexed on hers. “See the insignia on the tail?”
She searched the hull. Saw an image painted on the back end of the ship. A person kneeling maybe? “Yes.”
“All ships in the nebula are marked with their business so they don’t encroach on each other’s toes. Outside the nebula, they hide their marks, but here...it’s a symbol of power. Skull and crossbones for thieves.”
“Crossed knives for the assassins.” Zayn didn’t glance up as he spoke.
“And a kneeling slave for the slavers,” Dathan finished.
Bile rose in her the throat. “We can outrun them?”
“Z’s the best.”
“And this little baby has a few extras,” Zayn said.
The chase began.
Zayn threw the ship into a hard turn. He followed the turn with a tight dive. Sharp bursts of speed from Zayn’s custom-built boosters let them make up some ground, but the big ship kept coming. Like a shark in deep water, locked on to its prey.
Eos felt sick from the wild flying and the thought of what would happen if that ship caught them.
“Hey.” Dathan’s fingers brushed her temple and she turned her head. “It’ll be okay.”
“You don’t know that. I’ve put us all in danger.”
“We knew the risks.”
The steady stroke of those fingers helped calm her a little but it made her regret never letting him touch more of her. What if she ended up dragged into the slave market on Lucifa? Bile rose in her throat. Dathan gripped her chin. “Whatever happens, I promise I’ll get you to Star’s End. We’re going to set foot in that colony and discover its secrets. Together.”
She nodded but her stomach churned. He couldn’t guarantee that.
Another alarm blasted through the cockpit.
“Damn it.” Zayn slammed a fist against the command screen. “BEll!”
“The exterior distributor’s failed. The boosters are offline.”
Zayn’s chin slumped to his chest. “We can’t outrun them.”
Eos started. “What do you mean?”
“We’re going to get boarded.” Dathan’s tone was grim. He unstrapped and stood. “Z, cut the engines.”
Eos struggled out of her harness. “We’ll fight them off.”
Dathan sighed. “That ship’s probably carrying two hundred slavers. They’ll overpower or kill us in seconds.”
“What do we do?”
He gripped her shoulders. “I need you to trust me.”
She rarely put her faith in anyone. She depended only on herself.
He grabbed the tie holding her hair back and yanked it out. He scrunched it in his hands, pulling it over her face in a wild mess. “Keep your eyes down. Don’t draw attention to yourself.”
She nodded, her stomach a mass of hard knots. He shrugged out of his dark blue vest and held it up. She slipped her arms inside. It was too big for her and covered her hips.
He cupped her cheeks, yanked her close and pressed a hard, quick kiss to her mouth. Then he rested his forehead against hers. “Be careful.”
Before she could say anything, he pulled away. A loud clang of metal echoed through the ship.
The slavers had docked.
* * *
Dathan stood with his hands balled into fists. Edgy energy winged through his body like a thousand volts. He wanted to fight but knew it would get them all killed.
His brothers stood to one side of him, solemn and silent. Eos stood on the other side, shoulders hunched and gaze glued to the floor. Footsteps sounded on the metal floor.
Dathan drew in a breath. His quick, dirty disguise wouldn’t fool a Souk street urchin, let alone slavers experienced in plucking the best beauties in the galaxy. Even now the markings on Eos’s hands drew his gaze. And her slim legs bared by those damn shorts.
Three of them entered—a tall, thin reptilian woman flanked by two huge men. The men had muscles bulging on muscles and the woman was dressed in brown. Her skin was covered in scales of a shimmering silver-white.
The silence was deafening. The female slaver’s dead gaze moved over all of them and Dathan could almost see her cataloging vital statistics and sales possibilities. Her pupils were elongated slits in eyes the color of neon grass.
Then she zeroed in on Eos’s downturned head. Her gaze skimmed down to Eos’s hands, lingered.
Damn. Dathan tensed. Be strong, Doc.
The slaver strode forward. “Your silence tells me you know the drill.” There was the faintest sibilant hiss in her voice.
Dathan shot her a hot look. “I could spout the usual nonsense about how you have no right to board us, if you’d like.”
She tilted her head, her reptilian gaze spooky. “Humor. Such a useless trait in a slave. But I appreciate you sparing us the ineffectual rubbish. It saves us time.” She eyed the others as she strolled closer. “There is no law in the Devil’s Nebula except do as you please.”
“We don’t have much to interest you.”
“You have no idea what interests me.” Her hand stroked down his bare chest. Her scale-tipped fingers were rough. “Maybe I have use for a mouthy humanoid with a strong back. The Dutanium mines on Rios V need workers.”
He stiffened. Dutanium was an ore so toxic it killed anyone who worked with it within weeks.
“Or the emperor of Hylas is always looking for new specimens for his male harem.”
Dathan stiffened even more.
“But—” she circled around him, her hand still trailing over his skin, “—I’m not in the business of mine workers or men.” She stopped. “Take the woman.”
Dathan didn’t bother with a protest. He simply lunged at the man nearest him and landed a hard punch. The slaver staggered but then the second one was on Dathan with merciless blows. Two hard chops to his back and Dathan slammed onto the floor. He tasted the metallic tang of blood in his mouth.
“If she’s valuable to you, you can go to the House of Taarn on Lucifa and buy her back at auction.”
Shit, if they thought she was important to them, the price would skyrocket. “She’s just a passenger we picked up on Souk. Mouthy, demanding and high-maintenance.”
The reptilian woman nodded toward the dock. “Secure her.” She flicked a glance at Dathan. “You’d be surprised what tastes some buyers have. You’re free to continue on your journey, although the nebula is filled with others who might find men more to their tastes, so I’d keep your trip short.”
Eos struggled against the man holding her. She stamped on his foot and when he wrapped beefy arms around her and lifted her off her feet, she kicked madly. Her gaze caught Dathan’s.
Dathan ignored his body’s protests and managed to push into sitting position. “Fine. Take her. She’s been nothing but trouble. Always complaining and getting herself into messes I have to get her out of. It’ll be a relief to have her off the ship.” He had to make it count. I have to do it, Eos. Please understand. “She has no family. She doesn’t matter to anybody.”
Eos quit struggling. Her face drained of color and her golden eyes stared at him.
Gritting his teeth, he waved a hand. “Take her.”
She just kept staring at him. Then she gave him a small, almost imperceptible nod.
Relief flooded him. Smart, smart, Doc. God, he loved that intelligence of hers.
As the slavers started moving out, Eos struggled again. “Don’t let them take me. Don’t take me!”
Her performance was a little too good for Dathan. Their echoing footsteps were like tribal drums thumping in his ears. He stared at the cross-hatch pattern on the floor, trying to control his breathing. Eos yelled some inventive profanities and the sounds of her struggles made him slam his knuckles into the hard metal.
Then there was only silence and his father’s voice in his head calling him a useless failure.
Chapter Seven
Naked and shivering, Eos couldn’t see anything but darkness.
The past few hours had been a nightmare. She’d been blindfolded and stripped of her clothes. When she’d continued to struggle—and after she’d taken a good chunk out of one guard’s arm with her teeth—they’d shackled her.
She shifted and her chains rattled. How long had it been since they’d landed on Lucifa? An hour? Two? Who knew?
She shivered again and rubbed the goose bumps on her arms. A wave of embarrassment washed through her. The women who’d stripped her had oohed and ahhed over her mehndi. Like she was the star of some space fair freak show. They’d put makeup on her, brushed her hair out and rubbed fragrant oil into her skin.
Eos rubbed at her mehndi on her wrists. She was in a building in the depths of the city that covered the small planet’s surface. She smelled something that reminded her of incense and music played in the background—a discordant clash of sounds and instruments that was foreign compared to the gentle strumming of the Vedian sitari.
Slave owners must like headache-inducing music. Suva. She pressed a hand to the base of her throat, felt the wild fluttering of her pulse. Think of something else.
Dathan.
Anger was much better than fear. It poured into her in a hot rush. He should have been better prepared for something like this, or at least fought the slavers. Nope. Instead, his half-assed plan was to let her get taken and save himself.
Was he coming for her? She swallowed. Could he even find her? A door opened and Eos stilled. Damn, she wished she could see.
“Hmm, my girls were right. You are unique.”
A cultured feminine voice. Eos had heard many accents over her years of travel. This woman sounded experienced and in control and there was a hint of the central planets in her voice. What the hell was she doing out here?
Eos sensed the woman circling her. Heat burned her cheeks. She was being studied like prize livestock in the Galactic Trade Guild sale yards.
