Stealing the Dragon’s Heart by Kiersten Fay
11
Phase 4
En route to Planet Nazzu
“What the hell am I going to do with them?” Aidan muttered.
The first few phases of the race turned out to be simple checkpoints, and there had been nowhere to land and ditch the two interlopers. Aidan surmised that the commissioners had designed it that way in hopes that more contestants would make it to the later, more difficult, and therefore more exciting phases. That, or most of the action in this first leg of the race had been geared toward pitting contestants against one another. The last time Aidan had run Phase Nine, by the fifth phase, more than half the contestants had been forced to drop out, mostly due to irreparable damage to their ships and other losses. Because Dragoon was still so far behind everyone else, they were missing all the action…which, although he would never admit it to the others, might be a good thing.
Now they were in Phase Four. However, because the first part of the race had been such a breeze, he was getting a sinking suspicion that the last few phases were going to be racked with peril.
Moments ago, a dossier of Planet Nazzu—The first of many mandatory stops along the way—had arrived via transmission. He discovered it was essentially a desert wasteland with few documented oases. Hardly the ideal place to leave two slight females. Though Onnika had proven to lack basic morals, could he really bring himself to abandon them on such a planet?
Aidan guided Dragoon beyond the last checkpoint, a remotely monitored device that resembled a buoy in shape. When they passed it, a notification popped up on the screen that their ship’s location had been registered. He imagined the image of their ship was being broadcast to hordes of fans around the universe. Now it was just a straight shot to Nazzu.
The route they’d taken to get to this point had been a kind of zigzag pattern, which was typical of Phase Nine—a beeline to their final destination would be way too easy. Obstacles and deviations were necessary to amp up the entertainment value, so he expected to see more of that as well. All of it allowed race-hoppers—fans who followed along with racers—to take a separate, direct route to each stop, allowing them ample time to settle in before the contestants arrived.
Since Dragoon was currently in last place, Aidan didn’t anticipate a whole lot of fanfare when they arrived. With so little drama in this first stretch, they’d probably received minimal airtime on the feeds streaming from the many cameras positioned around the race. Not that he cared.
With all this lack of action, Aidan had been downright bored, and he found himself checking the mess hall camera more often than he should. When Zeek caught him, Aidan wondered aloud, “What do you suppose they’re talking about?”
“Oh, probably something along the lines of, ‘Please don’t kill me. I’ll do anything.’ Blah, blah, blah. You know, the usual.”
“I think they know we’re not going to kill them.”
“Don’t be so sure. They got pretty freaked when Ash did his barbaric one-armed esophagus hug.”
Asher defended his actions. “How else should we treat interlopers?”
“Not judging, man. I’m just saying, I got the sense they were terrified.” He paused. “But maybe not entirely because of us.”
“Sounds like Zeek has developed a theory,” Aidan prompted.
“No theory. Just a hunch. You don’t try to lie your way onto A) a strange ship, B) during a deadly race, and C) with a crew that would face no consequences should you vanish from the known universe unless you have a serious reason. Not saying that reason is good or bad, we just don’t know all the facts, is all.”
Asher scoffed. “Facts. Ha. I think your mind is easily turned by a pretty face.”
“I guess that’s why I’m so clearheaded around you, Ash.”
“Something’s wrong with your eyes, too.” Asher patted his face as though preening, then he righted the conversation. “We don’t need facts. They’re criminals. They should be locked in a brig, not lounging comfortably in the mess hall.”
“This ship doesn’t have a brig,” Zeek reminded him.
“We should have gotten a ship with a brig,” Asher grumbled.
Zeek countered, “We should have gotten a ship with a massage parlor and five Ullarian masseuses. Their fingers are like magic. Especially on my tender bits, if you know what I’m saying.”
“Argh!” Asher pinched the bridge of his nose. “I just got a terrible image in my brain.”
Zeek laughed. “Work of art, my bits are, so you’re welcome.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” Asher turned to Aidan. “We are leaving them behind, aren’t we?”
Aiden gazed out into the darkness of space, as if the answer to any question resided somewhere out there. Two strange girls were not his responsibility, and it wasn’t as if they couldn’t take care of themselves. Aside from Onnika’s proficiency at pickpocketing and bribery, that had been one hell of a kick she’d delivered. He could see her taking down a weaker man with strike like that. Zeek was on the fence, but Asher was clear: He wanted them gone. Aidan was inclined to agree. They were a distraction. One he couldn’t afford.
“They’ll be out of our hair soon enough,” he assured them. “After we get to Nazzu, we won’t have to worry about them at all.” And yet, some part of him doubted his decision. He wanted a little more information. Perhaps Priya was getting it, he thought as he glanced at Onnika on the security feed yet again. She was still engaging Priya and Lear in conversation. Priya’s assessment would give him some better insight as to how they should proceed.
He tapped a few buttons on his console, transferring the controls to Asher. “Take over, Ash. I’m going to get a little shuteye before we have to work for vouchers.”
“Aye, Captain.”
On the way to his quarters, he paused just outside the mess hall. Lear and the two girls were out of his line of sight, but he could see Priya through the open hatch, dutifully perched in the exact same spot where he’d left her. When she glanced over and met his gaze, he silently jerked his chin for her to follow.
Stowing her pulsar gun, she pushed to her feet. “Keep an eye on them, Lear. I’ll be right back.”
“Where are you going?” Onnika asked. Aidan wondered if he sensed a hint of concern in her voice, or if it was merely an act. For a fraction of a second, Aidan was tempted to peek in just to see if she looked as alarmed as she sounded, but he remained out of sight. Zeek might have been right about them being more frightened than they initially let on.
After leading Priya to his quarters, where they could speak in private, he asked about their conversation and received a complete rundown. Priya had been a high-ranking security guard on Uli Rings, a huge tourist spaceport. Before that, she’d held an array of peacekeeping positions and had been trained in combat by some pretty top-notch organizations, hush-hush government stuff that she never talked about. She was very analytical—except when it came to her man, Vin—and Aidan trusted her instincts implicitly.
“So, what is your opinion?”
“It’s hard to say at this point,” she replied. “They could be telling the truth, or the man they claim is after them could be a fabrication. We know they’ve lied already and have stolen from you. To trust them now would be a mistake.”
That was all he needed to hear. “Then we will exile them on Nazzu as planned. We’ll be arriving soon. Let Vin know.”
After Priya left, Aidan stretched out on his bed and tried to fall asleep, but his stomach was in knots and his mind whirled. This day had been more stressful than anticipated, and the race had only begun. During the long flight, he hadn’t been able to reach that mindless place of focus, that place where nothing else existed but him and the ship. Instead, he’d been thinking of the woman who’d robbed him blind with the sweetest smile on her face.
Watching her through the security cameras had been a curious kind of delight, though he didn’t know why. Each time he’d shut off the screen, if didn’t take long for his curiosity to corrode his resolve. What was she doing now? Was she still pacing, those sinful hips swaying back and forth? Or had she returned to comfort her friend, those supple legs peeking out from the slit in her dress? She had a habit of crossing and uncrossing them. A nervous tic? Aidan had been riveted.
Even now, the allure of his room’s personal view screen was calling him.
He rolled over and threw his pillow over his head.
Before, he’d been curious about Onnika’s story. Now that he’d heard it from Priya, he wasn’t sure what to think. Was she really spinning more lies, or were the two of them seriously in danger? Why should it matter? It wasn’t his problem, and they weren’t his responsibility. The decision was made. And if they really had been in danger, Nazzu should still be safer for them than Armina had been. Some other captain might take them in. If not another contestant, then perhaps a race-hopper. Pretty girls were always welcome somewhere.
He turned over and punched the lumps out of his pillow, but it was no use. There’d be no sleep for him. Giving up, he tossed the pillow aside, crossed to his view screen, and navigated to the surveillance feed.
“What the…?” The mess hall was empty!
Stabbing the keyboard with his finger, he shuffled through the surveillance feeds, first checking the recreation room, then—unfortunately—the engine room. Ugh. I really didn’t need to see Priya and Vin going at it. He quickly changed feeds, checking the rest of the ship. Nothing there. Nope. Not there, either.
When he finally found them, he let out a ripe curse. “What the hell are they doing?”