The Star Thief (25 page)

She shrugged, still not willing to look at him. She didn’t want to see the pity on his face. Or worse, disgust. “Hey, I hear the shuttle.”

A moment later, it came into sight, flying directly for them. She jumped to her feet in time to see the door on the facility slide open and a wave of mercenaries stream out.

She ducked down behind the rock and pulled out her gun. “Give me yours, too. We’ve got company.”

Finn handed it over and tried to get to his feet.

“Stay down. You’re in no shape to hit anything but the side of a barn.” She peered over the top of the rock, aimed, and took out the first two mercs with a clean headshot. The rest of them pulled up slightly, giving Keva enough time to land the shuttle. Two of the MYTH agents dashed out and lifted Finn between them. Renna fired a few more shots to cover them before turning to dart into the shuttle herself.

“Get us the hell out of here, Lieutenant,” she called over the whir of the engine.

The door slammed shut, and they were off a second later. A few dings sounded as bullets ricocheted off the side of the shuttle, but none of them penetrated the thick material.

“What happened?” Keva demanded as she steered them toward the
Athena
.

“I could ask the same thing. Where were you guys?”

She glared. “The hole closed as soon as you went into the building. We waited as long as we could before going back to the ship. I prepped the
Athena
for a fast getaway, but we wanted to wait to see if you’d be able to get back out. We were getting ready to leave when your comm came through.”

Renna nodded. “Good timing then. We got caught, and they beat up Finn pretty badly. He needs serious medical help. There’s a MYTH outpost on Lenue; that’s where we need to go.”

Keva’s only response was to radio the ship. “Prep for launch. We’re one minute out. Set course for the Clare system.”

TWENTY-TWO

When the
Athena
touched down in the spaceport on Lenue, a team of doctors were already waiting for Finn with a hover car. Keva insisted on going with them to the hospital, but Renna hung back. Things had gotten intense with Finn back on Banos Prime, to say the least. And he’d almost died. Again.

She needed some time to sort through her feelings. Away from his distracting presence. Already, her mind was whirling, trying to process the thousand and one different emotions he’d dredged up. Emotions she’d thought were long gone. But when he’d kissed her…

She stepped out of the ship and inhaled, the scent of dusty earth and starfuel washing over her and clearing her mind. The babble of voices from the market filled the air, shouts and calls echoing off the squat steel and plastic buildings.

She shifted her pack on her shoulder. It felt heavier than she remembered, as if laden with the weight of her own guilt. What she was about to do went against every bit of her code, but what had happened with Finn made it very clear that this whole situation was beyond anything she’d dealt with before. She knew better than to get involved or let her feelings get in the way, but this mission—with Myka, the facility, the mechs and the clay—was based on nothing
but
feelings. Running was her only option. Promises be damned.

She’d packed the microchips she’d stolen from Aldani’s labs, as well as the destabilizer. Once she sold them, she’d be able to hire a transport and disappear. If she was smart, she’d wait to sell the goods later, on a non-MYTH planet, but she was running out of time. If she stuck around much longer, the guilt would devour her insides.

She tried to ignore her gnawing unease and joined the crowds of humans and aliens as they wandered past the market stalls. The scent of unwashed bodies and decaying fruit hung like a fine fog over the square, coating everything it touched. Renna wrinkled her nose as she slipped between a pair of short, round aliens from the Clava system. Their six eyes turned to her, then slid away, dismissing her as nonthreatening.

If they only knew the truth.

She moved through the crowds like a shadow, weaving past people who never noticed her. She’d always loved the feeling of disappearing in a crowd, of becoming invisible. Gods knew she’d had plenty of practice. And it had saved her life more than once.

“Download area map.”

Her implant overlaid it across her vision. The market sat at the center of the spaceport, surrounded by the alien barrios. Now, she just needed to find the right contact to buy her merchandise and she’d be free.

She rubbed a hand across her chest, as if she could ease the tension that hung on her heart like lead weights.

MYTH trusted her. It would be hours before they suspected she’d run. When they finally came looking for her, she’d be nothing more than a ghost. She could disappear. Leave all of this behind her.

Leave Myka behind.

Leave Finn behind.

Her fingers twitched, and she forced them into her pockets. The kid had been nothing but trouble since she’d found him. And Finn…he’d already left her once. Why stay and watch a repeat performance?

She let out a growl and turned away from the market. She needed a drink before making any decisions. And she could use the time to contact the right buyer.

The closest bar was a seedy place tucked into a dank alley. When she pushed through the doors, the smoky, dark space welcomed her like she’d come home. The scent of spilled alcohol mingled with disinfectant, and her boots squelched against the floor as she made her way to the bar.

“New in the area?” the bartender asked. The Delfine smiled before leaning toward her to rest an elbow on the bar. “What’ll it be, gorgeous?”

She passed over a few credits. “A shot of Jade Sour and a beer, please.”

“Anything for you, love.” He reached under the bar and produced a small glass cylinder, snapping the top of the beer off before placing it on the counter in front of her. Then he grabbed one of the larger bottles behind him, flipping it between fingers. His spiky purple hair swayed as he tossed the amber container in the air, then poured her shot. “Anything else to go with that? My comm number perhaps?”

Renna tried not to roll her eyes. It took more than some fast fingers and smooth moves to get in her pants. “Thanks. I’m full up on my quota of bartenders for the moment, but I’ll let you know if that changes.”

She grabbed her drinks, then wove between tables to the empty booth she’d spotted in the corner. Renna sank into the seat, taking a position where she could keep an eye on the door. Wouldn’t do to get careless.

She downed the shot, chasing it with a sip of beer. The familiar warmth burned through her, and the muscles in her shoulders finally relaxed. Everything was going to be fine. She’d done this a million times before. Find the fence. Sell her stuff. Buy passage on the next ship out of here. Leave all her troubles behind.

Most of all, she needed to ignore the tickle of memories at the back of her mind. Places like this always reminded her of home, of running with the gang. Of the first time she’d met Finn and Blur and the rest of them. It had been a long time since she’d felt like that, a long time since she’d let herself trust anyone else.

Yet here she was working with another team. With Finn again. This one just followed the rules a bit more.

Godsdammit
.

She raked a hand through her hair, letting her head rest in her palm for a moment. Running made her a coward, but staying…staying made her stupid.

“Call Keva,” she ordered her implant, finally looking up again.

“What is it, Renna?”

Keva’s voice hitched, and Renna’s stomach dropped. “How’s the captain?”

“Still in surgery. He’s got three broken ribs, a punctured lung, and they’re trying to stop the internal bleeding.”

Her eyes squeezed shut for a moment before she asked, “Will he be okay?”

“They haven’t said yet. Nurse says they should know more in an hour or so.”

Renna nodded, though she knew the lieutenant couldn’t see her. “Keep me posted, okay?”

“I will. Thanks for getting him out of there, Renna. Finn said you saved his life.” She let out a long exhale. “I was wrong about you, Renna. I’m sorry for being such a bitch.”

Keva’s words wrapped around her, tightening like a noose. Renna had to clear her throat before she could speak again. “Thanks. I appreciate that. And…I was just doing what Dallas brought me into do. Anyway, I’ll see you back on the ship.” She turned off her comm and drained the rest of her beer.

What the hell was she going to do?

Renna sighed. She had to stop saying that she was going to quit and just do it. Once and for all. After she’d sold the Star and the items she’d taken from Aldani, she could more than afford her luxury-garden-world dream.

Renna rummaged through her pack until her fingers closed around the strange box she’d found in the facility’s safe. What was important enough to the mercs to lock away in the middle of an impenetrable facility?

She stared at the squat metal box on the table, then flipped the latch and opened the lid to reveal a plastic bottle full of orange pills. What the hell? Renna shook one out onto her palm and studied it. Simple gelatin coating, orange grains inside. She sniffed it, but there was no scent, no clue as to what it might be. Was this what they were making in the underground lab?

Renna dropped the pill back into the bottle and locked the box. Maybe the fence would have a suggestion for a back alley clay lab that could run an analysis for her. There had to be one on this planet somewhere. At least it would give her something to do while she tried to find a buyer for her haul. And maybe it would squash the guilt crawling through her gut.

Renna drained the last of her beer and got to her feet. Then ducked back down to hide behind a large Trezian when she spotted the familiar broad shoulders hunched over the bar.

By the gods.
Viktis
.

What was he doing on Lenue? Did that mean Myka was here, too?

The alien downed a shot of something and made a joke with the bartender that had the Delfine laughing.

Her heart kicked as all her plans shot out the window faster than a speeder car. If she stayed, she might be able to fulfill at least one promise. The most important promise. But Viktis couldn’t know she was here.

Viktis slapped a few credits on the bar and shoved his way to the door. Several of the other patrons glared at him but gave him a wide berth when they got a full dose of his fuck-off expression.

Renna followed at a safe distance, hanging back in the doorway of the bar for a long minute as Viktis headed down the alley away from the main street. With any luck, he was going back to his ship. And that would lead her to Myka.

Viktis walked at a sedate pace—not fast enough to look like he had a purpose, but not slow enough that people would jump him. Renna held back, keeping to the shadows.

Eventually, he turned down another street, navigating toward a three-story building that had seen better days. Boarded-up windows looked like blind eyes in the flaking wooden façade, and garbage had drifted against one side, piling up higher than her thighs. The place fit Viktis’s personality perfectly.

He stopped and looked behind him. Renna flattened herself against the building across the street. Her stomach tightened as his gaze raked the alley where she hid. A few moments later, he turned and went inside. Renna let out a breath. Viktis knew most of her tricks. If anyone had been able to spot her, it would have been him.

She darted across the alley and studied the building. There weren’t any open windows she could use to sneak in. No basement access panels or ventilation shafts. She was going to have to go in the front door. Blind.

Again.

Somebody seriously wanted to test her skills.

“Building plan,” she ordered. The schematics down-loaded, showing her the first floor was one large room, with a staircase off to the right leading up to the second floor. There seemed to be a back entrance opening into a small garden. Maybe she should try sneaking in that way. But if Viktis caught wind that she was coming… She couldn’t risk him fleeing with Myka.

“Heat signatures.”

“One individual detected.”

Renna rolled her shoulders and cracked her neck. Viktis was unpredictable, and after her stunt with the sleeping drugs… Well, he wasn’t exactly going to welcome her with open arms.

Her hands were steady as she pushed open the door. She did a quick sweep of the space with her gaze. It had once been the first floor of a house, but the plaster had been removed, leaving only the wooden frame behind. Wallpaper peeled from the few perimeter walls left, and the floor was scraped wood, worn and dusty with age. It smelled of must and mold and something else she didn’t want to think about.

Across the room, Viktis froze, his violet eyes widening. “Renna.”

“Miss me, Viktis?” She shifted lightly on her feet. Her gun was still in its holster at her waist, but she could get to it in a split second if he made any sudden moves.

“You have no idea.” His smile was cold. “You should have killed me when you had the chance.”

“Where’s the boy?” She moved farther into the room, and Viktis circled away from her, maintaining the fifteen or so feet that separated them.