“Our hitchhiker has decided to try her luck with another ride.”
Sanri sighed. “I’m hurt, Nojan. You don’t want to tell her what’s really going on?”
“There’s nothing going—” Before he could finish speaking, a proximity alarm started blaring.
“What’s that?” Mayra asked, moving over to stare down at the console.
“Fuck,” Nojan growled.
“Looks like we’ve got company,” Sanri said. “How interesting.”
All eyes turned to the viewscreen where a distinctive ship grew larger. It wasn’t huge, the ship itself. It consisted of a central portion shaped like a classic rocket with spokes radiating out to a wheel that encircled the center. The entire thing’s surface was reflective, meant to disguise it by making it look like an ordinary area of space. Like everything else around it.
It was Evar Kange’s ship.
How did he find us?The bounty hunter was good, but Nojan’s software should have hidden their tracks. Nojan punched up the display and then slapped himself on the forehead. The blast from the interstellar police cruiser’s destruction had knocked out his cloaking system. They’d been exposed for the last forty-five minutes. Apparently, that was all the time Kange needed.
He tried like hell to bring the cloak back up but it was a lost cause. Besides, they’d already been spotted. There were only two options remaining: talk their way out of this, or fight. And he had the feeling that in a fight, they were heavily outmatched.
Nojan glanced at Mayra, his mind running a thousand miles a second. She was the focus of Kange’s search, if his brother was to be believed. That meant the bounty hunter couldn’t find her here. He leapt from the console and grabbed her, pulling her out of her seat. “Time to hide you,” he said, pulling her toward the rear of the ship.
“Hide me?” Her eyes were glazed, her movement slow. Nojan wondered exactly what had put her in this mood. Then he thought he knew the answer. It seemed like their hitchhiking guest had a negative effect on the both of them.
“Yes, from Kange.”
“Is that whose ship that is? The guy your brother said Rantel sent after me?”
“Yep.” Nojan pulled her along until he reached a corner near the rear. He stepped up, putting his feet on the two smaller consoles that ostensibly served as their communications backup and rudimentary science station. He reached up, hitting the hidden lever that caused a compartment to open in the ceiling.
“Give me your hand,” he said, reaching down to Mayra.
She shook her head. “I’m not getting in that thing.”
“We don’t have time to debate this,” he growled, then felt immediately guilty as she saw the hurt that flashed over her face. He didn’t have time to apologize however. Nojan reached down and picked her up by the waist, lifting her as easily as a doll. “It won’t be terribly comfortable,” he said, “but you should be able to hide out here until I can convince him to go away. This compartment will mask your life signs if he comes looking for you.”
“Please don’t make me do this,” she whispered. “I hate confined spaces.”
“It’s only for a few minutes, I promise,” he said, his heart breaking at her tone. With a deep breath, he closed the compartment and jumped down.
“You want to tell me what’s going on around here?”
Shit, he’d almost forgotten Sanri. It was her fault they were in this situation. Still, he couldn’t hold it against her, as much as she grated on him. Sanri would have to participate in the deception he was about to attempt on Kange or it would be for naught.
“Rantel thinks Mayra has done him wrong. He’s sent the bounty hunter to bring her back to Vanfia. I can’t allow it.”
“Just what makes her so special,” Sanri grumbled, “that’s got all the eligible men in the galaxy fighting over her?”
Nojan snorted. “If you want Rantel, you can have him. I wouldn’t have thought smelly cat kings were your type, but to each her own.”
Sanri rolled her eyes. “It doesn’t make sense to insult me if you want me to play along with your little charade. Or should I tell the bounty hunter what you’re hiding?”
Nojan rounded on her, getting into her space. “You will keep your fucking mouth shut. If you think you’re going to give Mayra away, you’ve got another think coming. If you so much as say her name, I’ll toss you out the airlock before Kange can get close enough to save your miserable hide.”
Sanri scowled, poking her finger into his chest. “I don’t respond well to threats, partner. But I do like money. If you promise to pay me ten thousand Territhian credits, I’ll help you pull this thing off.”
“Ahoy there, vessel.” The deep voice crackled over the comm system. “I wonder if I could have a word with you.”
“Deal,” Nojan hissed. He turned back to the console and pushed the button to allow the transmission. The large form of Evar Kange showed up on the viewscreen.
