Other times . . .
He could do something simple and pass out. Nero claimed it was because he was young.
Hadrian didn’t know the truth. He only knew the reality that seriously sucked.
Debating what to do, he studied Jayne. Physically, she appeared around his age.
But there was an air to her that said she’d lived beyond her years. A hardness that came from experiences someone their age shouldn’t have.
It was why he hated to look in a mirror. All he saw was an old man who’d been kicked since the day his brother had saved his life when Hadrian was toddler.
Had she wanted to hurt you, she wouldn’t have saved you.
That seemed logical. But people were just so damn treacherous that logic seldom seemed to apply. End of the day, they were lying minsid snipes who seemed to get their jollies by causing as much mental pain to someone as they could.
If she was one of those . . .
He’d kill her as a public service.
Hadrian let go of the handle. “All right. I’ll stay . . . for a minute. You betray me . . .”
“You’ll kill me. I get it.” She started the transport again.
Still not sure of her intentions, he adjusted the backpack in his lap. “You really didn’t take a kill warrant?”
“No.” She jerked her chin at the small bag she’d put on the seat between them. “You can look at my original contract and see.”
Hesitant, he reached inside her pouch and pulled out her comm. “Code?”
She placed her finger against the screen.
It lit up to show him a screen full of junk he couldn’t read. “Trade license,” she said as she swung the transport toward the nearest landing bay.
Finally, the screen showed him a signed warrant that was written in Universal.
Hadrian scanned her contract. She was right. All she’d signed on to do was take him in. “You’re a licensed bounder andassassin?”
“Yeah.”
Interesting. Unless they were agents of the League, most assassins tended to be older. “Aren’t you a little young for that?”
He didn’t miss the pain that flashed in her eyes as she pulled her comm from his hand.
“That’s none of your business.”
“You’re hunting me for someone who lied to get a warrant. That makes this all about me.” He watched as she slid her comm back into her pouch.
“You have a point.”
Yes, he did. But he also had another question for her.“So, what happens when your original contract gets flipped to a kill warrant?”
When she responded, her tone was flat and emotionless. “If I don’t kill you, they’ll kill me.”
Made sense. Given what he knew about warrants, when one was assigned, the assassin either completed it or they were terminated.
She touched his arm. “But I’m not a killer.”
“Yeah, right. I saw the body count in the diner and your license.”
