I nearly jumped out of my skin when the wand flashed and sent an angry beep into my earpiece. Another bug!
Fright thundered inside me as I narrowly escaped the claw again. My frantic shimmy dislodged me from the ship, and I grabbed back on with a shout. Breathing hard, I waved the wand around like a crazy person, trying to locate the tracking device.
Beep, beep, beeep, beeeep, beeeeeeeep!
I swung around. Damn the Powers! It was behind me. I had to go back.
Chapter 23
“There’s another bug!” I cried, diving under the mechanical arm as it reached out.
“Leave it!” Jax roared.
Leave it? Now that I know it’s here?This wasn’t a hypothetical problem anymore; it was real.
The hunters would follow us almost immediately after we jumped. On Albion 5, they’d had to get back to their ship, track us, and then locate us more precisely in the Flyhole mess. All those factors would be eliminated for a hasty second jump. We’d be in the same situation we were in right now, just somewhere else.
For the millionth time, I wished theEndeavorhad firepower. But phasers weren’t authorized on cargo cruisers, and black-market stuff was way out of our budget. And bullets… They were for places with breathable atmospheres. No sparks in space.
The wand’s signal beeped more frantically toward the nose of the ship, and I crawled over the front panel. Reflected in the window, I saw the small cruiser looming behind me again, the claw opening wide. My crew looked on in horror, but I hardly had time to register their distress, or how they looked like ghosts, aging with every breath.
“Got it!” The device sat just above the central window, like a target on our heads.
I ripped it off and tossed it away.
“Move. Start moving!” I shouted.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Jax cried.
I pulled hard on anything I could grip and let go of the ship for terrifyingly long glides, propelling myself back over the top. The claw chased me. The armored tile I was gripping vibrated. I glanced over and saw a flash of retracting metal and dents not even a foot from me.
Holy shit, that was close.
Whoever was steering the claw readjusted. I sprang away before they could correct their aim.
“Drop us out of line, Jax!” Even if I managed to get inside, we couldn’t jump like this, sandwiched between other ships. We needed a minimum of open space.
Fear and effort got me to the other side of theEndeavor, and I crawled-flew-swam toward the open starboard door. The hunters repositioned themselves, getting so close that their powerful spotlight nearly blinded me. I turned away, squinting. The claw hit just beside my foot, and I yelped, jerking my leg up.
TheEndeavorfinally dipped, and I tumbled sideways, rolling out of control until a protruding instrument caught me in the ribs. I hissed, my gunshot wound exploding in agony.
“Tess!” Jax shouted.
“Here,” I panted out.
A bright light flashed near me, followed by another. Gasping, I threw myself away from the next blast. The hunters had phasers. No surprise there; they were Bridgebane’s lackeys.
My mouth stung with the acidic taste of panic. How had they missed?
They let off more shots that bounced off theEndeavor. They were aiming for the tether!
Shade must have convinced them to go for the live capture. If they could shake me loose from the hull and send me floating without the rope, that claw would snatch me up in an instant. I’d have nothing to hold on to, nothing to propel myself away from them.
There was too much hysterical shouting in my com now to make out any of it. I wished I could turn the damn thing off, but I didn’t have control over that. My side burned as I scuttled away from more phaser shots. One grazed my suit, making my pulse explode with dread.
I held my breath.
I didn’t freeze and die instantly, so my layers of protection must have mostly held. I could feel the cold starting to seep into my leg, though, and it scared me more than the phasers did.
