Rayven's Keep (5 page)

“Have you heard of Creighton Mutual?” She wiped wetness from her cheeks with the heels of her hands.

He froze at the name of the largest and most prestigious investment company on three worlds. Hell, he’d even put some of his hard-earned credits in the multiple businesses falling under Creighton’s banner.

“Of course,” he replied dryly. “Who hasn’t?” There had been no mention of her connection to Creighton Mutual, not surprising if someone wanted to keep pertinent pieces of information buried. Regardless, he should have made the connection when doing his research. He must have been more tired than he’d thought, to have missed it.

She sniffed and cleared her throat. “My family owns Creighton. More specifically, my grandfather.” Her voice was a little hoarse, but steady. “Most of my family is involved in the business one way or another and I’m no exception.”

“If that’s the case, then what were you doing in a backwater like Lodestone?” He watched her expression change and mentally ran down the information he’d discovered. “And,” he continued, “I would think a family with the kind of associations yours has wouldn’t allow one of their daughters to rub elbows with the kind of people blowing into a mining town. It is too dangerous. Hell, I would think the only thing required of you would be to marry the right person and further the aspirations of your family.”

He knew he’d hit a nerve when she stiffened and shot him a resentful look.

“I have one of the best educations money can buy. I speak four languages fluently and have a mind of my own. A mind my family doesn’t want me to use. I’m not like my sister. I want more from life than being an ornament on some man’s arm. To be paraded about when it suits him. Or to be stuck in some corner office with a meaningless title while others do the work.”

“So you ran off to Lodestone, of all places. Smart.”

Two spots of color bloomed on her pale cheeks. “You don’t understand!”

“Then enlighten me.” Angry all over again, he stood and paced the small confines between the two bunks. “What in the four corners of hell were you doing in Lodestone? What kind of trouble are you in, little girl? Why would you think it wise to ask me for help?” Nick thumped his bare chest for emphasis and she jumped. “You don’t know me. I might be worse than what you are running from. Did you stop to consider that?”

“I researched you,” she answered in a small voice.

Nick stopped and turned to face her. She’d shocked him and not in a good way. Folding his arms over his chest, he braced his legs apart and scowled. A muscle jumped in his cheek. “You researched me?”

“Yes,” she squeaked. Ducking her head, she plucked at a loose thread on her shirt. “You have to understand, I was desperate. I was trapped and I needed to get off Lodestone. I needed to get home. Everything I read indicated you could be trusted and when I saw you I chose to believe it.”

“And, what pray tell, did you learn?” He was amazed he sounded so calm, almost conversational.

Tru scooted to the edge of the bed. She stood and slowly eased around him, away from the wall, her back to the open area. Maybe it hadn’t occurred to her yet there was nowhere to run on the ship.

He raised an eyebrow and forced himself to keep his arms crossed over his chest. “I look like I can be trusted. Interesting. You got all that from a haloviz and a search on my name.”

“N-no. I...ah...looked up your business records and noticed you have a good reputation for...um...being honest in your...in your business practices.” She backed up another step.

He shook his head and huffed. He shouldn’t have been surprised she would have access to some of his information, as he’d made a name for himself. He’d manipulated most of the available data on himself and the information was innocuous at best.

“I see. And how did you know I’d be on Lodestone? The trip was privately negotiated between Axyl Hargrave, the head of Geotern, and me. I didn’t know what day I was going to be there. So how did you?” He stepped toward her and she stepped back.

“I d-didn’t. Not really. I was looking for a way off-world and when I saw you I thought I’d found it,” she said, staring at her feet.

“Warning. Warning. Captain report to bridge.” The tinny sound of the ship’s computer announced their approach to Alludra.

Needing to get to the controls, Nick grabbed Tru by her upper arms and moved her out of his way. He ignored her protests and strode to the helm console.

Sliding into his chair, he punched in landing coordinates to his private dock. He would have just enough time to dress before their final approach. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He had a bad feeling about the situation he found himself in and his intuition was usually right on the money. Damn it.

Grimly, he opened a channel and let Seth know when to expect them. He kept the conversation brief, shut down the com, and returned to the crew quarters to dress for arrival. He wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings as he grabbed his clothes and started to undo his sleeping pants. A small, sharp inhalation recalled Tru’s presence. Swearing, he slammed into the cleanser room and banged elbows and knees trying to dress in the cramped space. His mood didn’t improve when he emerged to see Tru once again wedged in a corner of her bunk.

“This conversation isn’t finished, Tru. Not by a long shot. Lucky for you, I don’t have time to continue verbally sparring with you.” He searched her face, noting her mutinous expression. He took a slow, deep breath and let it out before he sat on the edge of his bunk to pull on his knee-high boots. “You will tell me what I want to know, make no mistake. Next time there won’t be anything interrupting. In the meantime, you will be my guest while I figure out what I’m going to do with you.”

Some of the tension left her shoulders, although her expression didn’t change. He stood up and faced her, holding out a hand to help her move from her corner. She hesitated before she placed her hand in his, and he deliberately kept his clasp loose. Her cold fingers trembled against his palm. As soon as she gained her feet, he released her hand and stepped away.

“We’ll land soon. I want you strapped in immediately.”

Chapter 4

Tru leaned as far forward as the seat harness allowed, gaze glued to the ship’s viewscreen showing Alludra’s surface as they entered the atmosphere. She kept a wary eye on the man beside her as well.

They broke through the cloud cover, and Tru got her first glimpse of the white-capped mountains and deep forests spread panoramically below her. She tracked the winding path of an immense, slow moving river. Against one of its wide, gentle curves, a large city sprawled outward, its tall buildings gleaming in the morning light. The ship switched from the artificial grav needed in space to the gravitational pull of the planet below them.

“The city to our right is Glendoran.” Nick adjusted their trajectory. “It’s the biggest city on Alludra. The main spaceport has a great deal of traffic, but we won’t land there. We’re heading a bit farther west, toward a private landing pad.”

“Yours, I suppose?”

He shrugged, leaving the interpretation to her. Nick slowed
Messenger’s
descent, and the bottom of Tru’s stomach dropped out with the sudden change in speed. The ship gave a great shudder in the clutch of Alludra’s gravity and the reduction in engine power. Gripping the arms of her chair, she glanced at her companion. She’d never travelled on a ship as small as this one, where she felt everything. Unnerved, needing the distraction, she focused on the scene outside.

Sprawling cities populated her own world, Bretonne, a dense, multi-cultural planet with little green space. Her family’s wealth guaranteed her home to be surrounded by beautifully landscaped gardens. Artificial and elaborate, they were designed to impress. She enjoyed the bubbling fountains, flowering plants and manicured pathways, but the verdant land below made her realize how pale those gardens appeared in comparison.

A staggering variety of giant trees grew on this world, gilded in colors she’d never seen before and hardly had names for. Even the color of the sky seemed brighter, with shades drifting from the palest of blues to deep indigo. Clouds buffeted by an unseen wind skittered across the clear sky, wispy trails of white blurring into the blue.

Nick banked sharply to the left, slowing their descent further and leveling off. Tru jerked and clutched the armrests of her chair tighter.

“Relax. I haven’t crashed one of these babies yet, so stop worrying,” he said testily, keeping his gaze on the navigation console. He moved his fingers over the keys, making small alterations to their course, inching the ship’s nose up.

Closer to the ground, their airspeed was more noticeable. The land became less thickly wooded, giving way to gentle hills and valleys. Houses played peek-a-boo in the ever-changing landscape and farmland stretched like a brown scar through the brilliant colors of the trees.

Polished metal glinted in the sunlight. A handful of ships similar to
Messenger
occupied an immense landing pad and held little interest for Tru. The same couldn’t be said for the sleek, small craft that attracted and held her attention. Narrow and clearly designed for only one occupant, they gleamed with predatory intent. They looked like weapons waiting to be fired. Why would he have such machines?

She turned to Nick to ask. The answer materialized right before her, reflected in the harsh beauty of his face. Here, barely contained, existed the same power and the same deadly potential. He was as much a weapon as the craft resting on the landing pad. A shiver rippled down her back.

His absolute concentration gave her the opportunity to admire the masculine grace and economical movements of his body as he prepared the ship for landing. Grateful the landing gear engaging camouflaged her soft sigh, Tru quickly turned her head and nibbled her bottom lip. She felt a powerful mix of uneasiness and attraction in his presence.

He set
Messenger
down with hardly a bump, engines hissing as they shut down and began to cool. With a flick of his wrist, he unbuckled the shoulder harness and rose while she fumbled with her own buckles. She stayed seated, because the tight confines of the bridge would bring their bodies uncomfortably close. She already struggled with her awareness of him and the idea of being near enough to feel the heat radiate from his big body sent a different kind of shiver down her spine.

He retreated a little and motioned for her to precede him to the back of the ship and the outside door. “We’re just a short distance from my home. I maintain my business interests there.”

She gave him as wide a berth as possible while rising from her chair and leading the way. His gaze drilled into the back of her neck, and her heartbeat kicked up a notch. She tried to keep her unease at his closeness hidden. Instead, she concentrated on keeping her pace languid and graceful while hampered by heavy clothing and clumsy boots. Who knew all the training in deportment she’d endured would prove useful? Remembering the lessons, she straightened her spine and raised her chin a bit more, finding courage enough to let a tiny smile tease the corners of her mouth.

When they reached the main hatch, Nick slapped a hand against the control panel and door seals hissed as they released. The panel opened and a ramp extended to the ground. Hot, humid air washed over her, redolent with the scent of growing things and the mingling overlay of machinery and fuel fumes. Squinting against the bright sunlight and even brighter flashes glinting off the metal surfaces, she fought a sneeze.

His hand at the base of her spine urged her forward. She swallowed a gasp as its heat danced seductive sparks up her back. Distracted she forced herself to watch her feet as she moved. Metal grillwork of the landing pad echoed as he hurried her toward the end of the tarmac. Stone stairs curved to a pathway bordered by flowering shrubs and unobtrusive lights. The juxtaposition between the harsh environment of the landing pad and the garden path before her was unexpected. Intrigued she glanced at Nick, but didn’t have the nerve to ask questions.

By the time they reached the bottom, moisture prickled along her hairline and dotted her upper lip. Tru fumbled with the tabs on her heavy jacket and wished she dared stop long enough to remove it. Its weight suffocated her in the heat, but the impatience stamped on Nick’s face convinced her otherwise. Instead, she contented herself with letting it flap open and catch any stray breeze coming her way. She refused to ask him to slow down, even though she trotted to keep up with his long strides. She had her pride, battered though it was.

They rounded a corner and before her, shimmering in the sunlight, was his home. She stopped dead in her tracks, trying to take it all in. He took a couple of steps and stopped. He half turned, an eyebrow raised in question. She shut her gaping mouth with a snap, ignoring the flare of satisfaction on his face. “Oh my.”