“You scared of some stairs, Frank?” I slid him a challenging look.
“Not all of us get a hearty workout running for our lives every day like you do, Bailey.” His effort at humor scraped a thin layer off the coating of dread sticking to our group like rotten honey.
Eight levels down and still in the docking areas, the lift opened. A Red Beam zipped past. I forced myself not to flinch, and the drone’s searching red eye swiveled toward the guy blocking the lift with an arm and waving his friends over.
We all stood absolutely still, trying not to draw the drone’s attention. It locked on to the two young men moving toward the lift at a jog and then zoomed away to scan an incoming vessel.
Time seemed to slow as we waited for them to get in the elevator. A saw buzzed. Sparks showered off a ship being repaired two landing pads over. The roar of the blowtorch scorched my ears as though it were right next to us, but at least it dulled the sound of my hammering heartbeat, the powerful thuds nearly deafening me.
When the two others arrived, we backed up, making room for the trio juggling bags and boxes at the lift entrance. They barreled in together like an asteroid, all energy and impact. Nerves jumped in my throat. How long until another Red Beam flew by? DWALSHs were always crawling with them.
My pulse echoed through all my hollow places and pounded out warnings.Close the doors. Move now. Finish this.
One of the new recruits—because they were definitely that, complete with brand-new Dark Watch uniforms and pristine military-issued packs—glanced up at Jax as he balanced his belongings, using one knee to help. “Can you press Middle H for us? No hands.” He smiled, his pile of stuff teetering.
Jax reached past the young man’s shoulder and pressed MH on his side of the lift. The scar on his cheek stretched as his jaw flexed.
One of the others tilted his head back. Not too tall and a little scrawny, he seemed in awe of Jax. “Man, you’re huge. I’m glad I signed up.” All three nodded and grinned, as if simply joining the Dark Watch turned you into a badass heap of man like Jax.
I forced even breaths in and out, reminding myself that these were kids, barely out of school and probably not yet understanding that they’d just sold their souls to a demon in a brown suit.
“You guys part of the new crew?” The boy who’d stopped the elevator glanced at us over his shoulder. His open gaze zeroed in on me. I was in the middle. His bone structure and coloring reminded me of Miko’s. Instant fury rose up, because she was gone, and he was joining the man who’d killed her. “This is our first assignment.”
No kidding.It was hard not to ask why he looked so proud to be a spanking new member of the arm of oppression that reached across the galaxy. Would he wake up one day and wonder why he was doing the dirty work of a totalitarian regime that had replaced democracy? Would he choose a new path and change his life? Or would that easy, boyish smile gradually twist into a sneer as power over others corrupted him?
“Maintenance,” I said curtly.
He seemed to expect more, but I didn’t feel like chatting.
He turned back around, looking a little cowed and awkward. After a moment, he and his buddies laughed about something they’d done down on Ewelock the night before, a last hurrah before active duty. Apparently, twins were involved, which was frankly too much information for a crowded elevator.
MH flashed on the upper screen, the lift stopped, and the doors opened.
The three new recruits mumbled goodbyes without looking back at us and quickly exited, still laughing and bumping shoulders with each other. Shade was the only one who managed to mumble a goodbye back. I was too busy wanting to bash their heads together.
We hit Lower Z without meeting anyone else, which was a small miracle considering the moving-day bustle.
As the lift stopped, Shade leaned close to my ear and murmured, “You weren’t very friendly to those kids.”
“They’re not my friends,” I answered.
The doors opened, and I leaned cautiously forward, checking the corridor up and down for a Red Beam. No security drones in sight. I stepped into the deserted hallway, not surprised that Lower Z was dead. The last level of each alphabet tier was mainly used to house the big systems for that section. I could hear the low hum of the air and water recycling units that took up most of the level, along with the cluster of phasers that protected the bottom of the spacedock.
“But don’t you think they might remember the tall grumpy lady in the lift?” Shade asked, following me down the corridor along with the others.
“We’re on a DWALSH,” I said. “It’s better to intimidate than be friendly. Friendly is what stands out. Pretty soon, they’ll know to expect to be scared and bullied, and then they’ll start doing the same to the next group of kids just so they can stop getting picked on themselves.”
“That doesn’t sound like you.” Shade looked at me as though he suspected possible body snatching. “And that’s a pretty grim outlook.”
“The galaxy’s a pretty grim place.” I waved my hand to the right when we came to a choice of corridors. Then—because now guilt was stabbing at me like a tiny little ice pick—I muttered, “They chose this life.”
Besides, what did he want me to do? Give them a rousingJoin the rebellionspeech when we were trying to blend in?
“Not everyone has the luxury of choice,” Shade said.
“Luxury?” I asked, incredulous. “Is that what I live in? Youalwayshave a choice.”
If my goal was to shut him up, it worked. Shade didn’t say another word.
