Born of Legend (20 page)

Jullien kept her shielded with his body until they were clear of the ship.

Once they were in the bay, she paused to call the Hadean Corpsmen, then turned toward Jullien who was working at a kiosk. “What did I just miss?”

“Hang on a sec, there's a few things I need to take care of, real quick.”

Trajen didn't join them until after the crew was on board the Caronese ship, under heavy armed escort, and they were going through the launch clearance. “What
exactly
did you do to that ship?” he asked Jullien.

Jullien shrugged. “Deactivated their HD and LD. Reactivated the homing beacons. Sent out a hidden distress call on the Caronese EDB. By the time they hit the outer edge of Gorturnum space, the Caronese should have a full welcoming party for them. Since Senator Nylan's son was the ship's commander and they killed him while capturing it, he'll be hellbent on revenge. They won't make it back to Caron alive. And you won't have their blood on your hands, and will not have broken any Tavalian Code or law that you have to answer for with the UTC.”

“You are one devious little bastard.” Trajen shook his head. “Don't know if I should be impressed or afraid.”

“Bit of both.”

“Yeah…” Trajen glanced over to the door he'd ripped off their ship. “Guess we both have unresolved childhood anger issues.”

“Yeah and I don't believe in burning bridges. Rather I bomb those mothers to the ground and toast marshmallows over their smouldering remains.”

“I'm going to remember that.”

They fell silent as the Caronese ship launched.

Sheila came out of her office completely distressed … until she saw Jullien standing at the kiosk. Then she ran at him, and to Ushara's complete shock, she threw herself into his arms. “Oh thank God! You're all right.”

He looked as baffled as Ushara felt. “Um, yeah.”

Sheila patted him on the back. “Well don't be so stupid next time, shithead.”

“Honestly, I was trying not to be so stupid this time. You see how it turned out. Perhaps next time I should try for an all-out moron. That might actually work for me.”

Laughing, she sighed. “No one else understands me like you do, boy. So stop being an idiot. If you're late for work tomorrow, I'm going to kick your ass.”

He checked his watch. “Well, it's been a good fifteen minutes since my last ass-kicking. I should be due a new one by morning. I shall look forward to it,
mu tara
.”

With one last growl at Jullien, Sheila chucked him on the arm and left.

Ushara grimaced at him as Sheila crossed the bay and returned to her office. “How can you stand the way she talks to you?”

“What
that
? I think she's hilarious.”

“You're not serious?”

Yet he was. She could see the sincerity in his brownish-green eyes. “Trust me, I know the difference between someone who's churlish by nature because they're trying to protect themselves from being harmed by others, and someone whose barbs are meant to let blood. Sadly for her, others can't distinguish it. And so she does more harm to herself by trying to form a protective barrier from strangers than she would if she'd just be nice. But I understand the need to strike the first blow before they do. I certainly don't hold it against her, and I know she doesn't mean it. Besides my ego isn't that fragile. It would require that I actually possess one.”

Trajen snorted. “Anyway…” He jerked his chin toward the abandoned ship. “It appears we have a spare vessel. Would you like it, Lord Jullien? Seems only fair since they were planning to gut you on it?”

“Don't need that piece of shit. Can't fly it after some thoughtless bastard ripped the door off its hinges.” He passed an amused stare toward Trajen. “I'm thinking it should go to Sheila since she didn't get her payment for the work they'd commissioned from her. Besides, her daughter's treatments run high. I don't have any dependents. I drink rather cheap, as in free, tap water these days.”

“Yeah, but you could replace those shitty boots.” Trajen raked a sneer over them.

Jullien arched a brow. “Why? I like these boots. They're broken in. And they come with free air-conditioning. I hear they're even trying to patent this idea in the Oksana desert region, only there, they're called
sandals
. It's true. Look it up, if you don't believe me. It's the latest fashion craze.”

Laughing again, Trajen shoved at him. “Shut the hell up.” With an irritated growl, he started away from them, then stopped to look back with a fierce frown. “Why do I like you, again?”

“It's the fangs. It makes us look all cute and cuddly.”

“Yeah. That must be it.” And with that, Trajen wandered off.

Ushara cocked her head as she looked down at Jullien's ragged boots. “Why don't you replace those?”

He shrugged. “Don't know. Guess I'm too busy wasting creds on frivolous things like food, power, and rent.”

“And my sister's ship?”

“Your sister has four daughters to feed.”

“Then why don't you let me replace your boots?”

He wrinkled his nose at her. “Nah, see I know how this goes. It's called progressive entrapment. Come here, little boy. I got a piece of candy for you. Get in my shuttle … next thing I know, I'm drunk and naked in your bed. You're having your wicked way with me. My mama warned me all about females like you and taking candy from strangers.”

She laughed at him. “I think I'd have a hard time getting away with that.”

“Sadly, I doubt you would. Pretty sure I'd be an easy fool for you, which is why I have to pass on the boots. Besides, I hate shopping. If you took me, you'd see the beast that lives inside me and I'd rather you live with the myth of this noble hero for awhile longer.”

Ushara tsked at him and that adorable grin on his handsome face. “You are so incredibly charming.”

“Not really. I'm told I'm a giant asshole by most.”

“Who?”

He screwed his face up. “Oh that is a frightfully long list. Terabytes of data, point of fact.”

“They don't know you.”

“They would all argue that they do.”

“And what do you say?”

Sobering, he glanced away. “Maybe they know me better than I do, really. Are we not all a thousand characters in millions of plays throughout our lifetime? Is Ushara the mother the same character as Ushara the daughter? Or Ushara the admiral the same as Ushara the older sister? Or the younger sister? Did your husband not know a different side of you than anyone else in your life? What about the male who knows Ushara the testicle-launcher? I'm sure he would paint a very different image of you than I would. Who among us is not ever-changing? Ever evolving into someone new? Maybe someone better … or someone worse.”

Dear gods, he was incredibly astute. “And who do you want to be, Dagger?”

“Honestly? I would sell whatever is left of my used up, blackened soul to be the hero Vasili sees whenever he looks at me and not the piece of worthless shit I know for a fact I truly am.” And with those barely audible words, he turned and walked away with that sexy predator's lope that was uniquely his.

Tears choked her as she watched him go. He was exactly the male Vasili thought him to be. If only he could see it.

But sadly, his past was too brutal for that. And his conscience too riddled with guilt. Yet one day, she hoped he could find the ability to judge himself with the same compassion that he used when he looked at others. 'Cause the gods knew, while he wasn't perfect, he was as caring and kind as anyone she'd ever known. And if ever anyone deserved a second chance in their life, it was definitely him.

She just hoped he realized it before it was too late.

Sighing, she headed back for her office.

*   *   *

“Told you so, didn't I?”

Oxana blinked in total disbelief as she watched her older sister leaving the bay. “Wow … I've never seen her look like that before.”

“I know, right?” Her twin sister, Jalyna, turned toward her, eyes wide. “I know what Paka said, but he's wrong. We have to do something.”

“What?”

“What, what? You know what!
That's
what. Sheez, what? I can't believe you'd even ask me, what. Like you don't know.” Her sister took off after the tiziran.

Oxana panicked. “Jay, stop!” she hissed. “What are you doing?”

“What we should have done while he was at Mum's. Now, are you coming? Or are you going to stand there, looking like Mary and being all scared of me? Are you a Fyreblood or a darkheart?”

Oxana hissed at her. “You shouldn't be using that term, you know? It's obnoxious and rude and insulting, especially for someone who's about to try and hook her sister up with one.”

“Well it's not like he's a whole one. He's only partly darkheart.”

“Oh ‘cause he's human. Like that's
so
much better.”

“Now who's being bad, huh?”

“Still you,” Oxana said sullenly. “You're always the bad twin. Ask anyone who knows us.”

“Bite-it!”

“What are you hens gaggling on about now?”

They froze as their little sister, Mariska, caught up to them. Almost identical in looks to Ushara, she was the smaller, more petite version of their older sister.

Jay glanced around with feigned innocence. “Nothing. Nothing at all.”

“Oh yeah, right … um.… Never. What are you plotting and who's your victim, and can I help hide the body this time?”

Rolling her eyes, Oxana let out a long-suffering sigh. “Why don't you go find a cousin or brother to annoy? Davel's in. Better yet, go trash Axl's wife. We don't like her.”

Mary shook her head. “I'd rather aggravate you two.”

“'Course you would.”

“So leak the damage…” Mary poked each of them in turn.

They exchanged an annoyed frown. “Fine,” Jay yielded first. “We're going to see the male who fixed Ana's ship.”

“I thought you didn't know who repaired it.”

Oxana shrugged. “Paka found out his name. I was going to thank him.”

“See.” Jay flipped her red hair over her shoulder, dismissively. “Now run along.”

“Nuh-uh. There's more to this. He's hot, isn't he?” Mary gasped audibly. “Jay's going to cheat on her husband! Oh my God! That's it, isn't it?”

“No!” Jay snapped. “You're horrible! Why would you think that?”

“'Cause Ana can't cheat on hers. Then what's the deal?”

Oxana leaned in to whisper in her ear. “The tiziran is the one who did it. And Ushara is falling for him.”

Mary gasped even louder. “No!”

“Yes!”

“No!”

“Yes!” the twins squealed in unison.

Mary's eyes widened. “Can I come?”

“Well you have to now or else you'll tell and we'll have to kill you.” Jay grabbed her arm and they hauled her after them, toward Jullien's stark condo in the icky, awful section of the station where they tried to never venture.

Mary stuck her tongue out and shuddered as they approached his door. “Does he really live here?”

“Yes,” Oxana said under her breath while Jay knocked. “Stop being rude.”

“Is he not home? Knock harder. Place can't be
that
big.” Mary pushed Jay aside. “Here. Let me help.”

*   *   *

Jullien scowled at the insistent pounding on his door as he fastened his pants. He was still dripping from the shower. But the furious frenzy outside said whoever was there wasn't going to give him time to finish bathing and if he didn't answer soon, they might break through the door's meager hinges.

What the hell was so imminent?

Toweling his hair, he opened the door to find three very colorful, young females on his stoop. Three who gaped in an almost choreographed unison at his appearance. It would have been comical if he wasn't so damned irritated.

But at least it succeeded in taking the edge off his anger and allowed him to be cordial to them. “May I help you?”

The two with insanely bright fluorescent red hair were obviously identical twins. One was dressed in a yellow and red flightsuit and the other in a plain red one. Both were well-armed, but didn't appear threatening. The smaller of the three had stark white hair with pieces of it that she'd dyed bright pink and purple—the same colors that Ushara used as Tavali war paint on her face. And now that he looked at them, he realized that their features were extremely similar to hers, especially the youngest girl's.

She elbowed her way past the twins. “Hi.” She extended her hand to him. “I'm Mariska, but you can call me Mary. Everyone does. These are my sisters and when they find their voices again, which will be any shrill moment, they're Oxana and Jay, or actually something unpronounceable my mother cursed her with because we're weird, as if Fyrebloods weren't strange enough already. Anyway, we came over because—”

“Oh shush, Mary!” the twin in the red suit said, pushing her sister back. “You weren't even a part of this. You hijacked our mission.” Growling, she faced Jullien. “I'm Ana. Or Oxana and I'm the one you helped. I wanted to thank you, personally, for it.”

Mary hadn't been kidding about the shrillness of their voices. Jullien had to resist the urge to cringe or cover his sensitive ears.

Instead, he forced himself to smile at her. “You didn't have to do that.”

“Yes, I did. It was very kind of you and we wanted to do something for you to show how much I appreciate what you did when you didn't have to.”

True, honest terror set in for the first time in his life. Jullien had no idea what they had in mind, but it couldn't be good for him.

All scenarios from sex to food ended with his bloody dismemberment, and pieces of his body being found all over the universe.