by J. N. Chaney
“You’ll only hear from me if we’re under attack, sir,” assured the AI.
“And stand by to fact-check whatever lies they try to feed me.” I gestured toward the cockpit door. “Let’s see what we’ve gotten ourselves into.”
I walked casually into the lounge, taking my sweet time with it, as if I had nothing in the world to do besides torture them—and if I didn’t get paid, that was exactly what would happen.
The three of them sat in the chairs by the sofa, their hands cuffed behind their backs and defiant expressions.
I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms, taking a moment to survey them. They all seemed to be in their early twenties, and their clothing was torn and dirty from our little scuffle. Black clothing that was good for hiding in the shadows.
I'd made sure to store their weapons in the lockers in the cargo bay, since I didn’t want any of them to have access to firepower at any point. That rifle had only been released a few months ago, according to the research Sigmund had done on the gal-net while we were escaping.
It raised a red flag. These kids had secrets. Deadly ones.
The girl—Ruby, if I remembered right—sat still in her chair, like a statue. From the way she was looking at me, she wished she could get her hands on me—and not in a way I’d enjoy.
The girl had problems, no question, and her non-reaction to seeing me hold a gun to her friend’s head told me it likely wasn’t the first time.
The kid I had knocked unconscious—the one with the cowboy hat—was awake now. Dried blood stained his temple, and he glared at me with the same hatred Ruby did. As our eyes met, he struggled with the cuffs locking him to the chair. To no one’s surprise, they didn't budge.
Like I was going to give him even the slightest chance of escape. It was adorable, really.
He was probably used to muscling his way out of his problems, based on his build and the wasted energy fighting with handcuffs.
The only calm one seemed to be the guy I'd used as a hostage when Ruby had a gun on me. He sat still and upright, watching with calm and quiet eyes. He tilted his head, almost studying me. Probably smarter than he looked, if I had to guess.
Ruby had done as he asked, back on the station, which suggested he had some authority. I’d have to keep that in mind.
For now, there was only one way to get answers.
“You look like you got something to tell me,” I said, half-smiling.
“If you don't let us go right now, we’ll kill you,” he warned me.
I let my gaze drop pointedly to his restraints and raised my brow. Maybe I’d been too hasty in my initial evaluation of this shooter. Real snipers were generally calmer than this kid, leading me to believe he wasn’t a professional. Not in the traditional sense, anyway. Probably had aspirations for the job, and maybe he’d spent some time in a field picking off cans, but he probably hadn’t been at this long enough to call it a job.
The other man fixed a hard stare on his partner. “Shut the hell up, Hunter.”
Hunter and I both turned our heads to look at the man at the far end of the lounge. He still sat there, stoic and silent, his full attention on me.
At least one of them wasn't a complete idiot.
I leaned my ass against the back of the sofa and cast one more cursory glance across the three of them.
“You cost me a bounty,” I said, glaring at the trio. “Decker was on his way to trial for his crimes. You just denied a whole bunch of people justice.”
“What do you care about justice?” asked Hunter. “You’re just pissed we killed him before you could.”
“I wasn’t going to kill him, idiot,” I pointed out. “The bounty required he be brought in alive. Or did you miss the part where you shot him, while he was alive and well and tied to a chair?”
At that, at least, Hunter shut his mouth.
“Where were you taking him?” asked the one who hadn’t given me his name yet.
I debated telling him to shove it, since this wasn’t his interrogation. If it got them talking, though, I didn’t care what they knew about a job that probably wasn’t going to pay anything.
“I was taking him to Avos,” I answered. “Apparently, he killed a lot of people there.”
I’d expected a quip from Cowboy Hat, or some kind of scathing insult from Ruby. To my surprise, none of them said anything. In the lingering silence, Ruby and Hunter just shared a knowing glance.
This wasn't news to them.
“But you knew about that,” I observed, not really asking. “You knew where I was taking him. You knew why Avos wanted him, but you killed him anyway. That cost me my fee.”
I kicked off the sofa and walked past the three of them, arms crossed as I tried to piece this nonsense together.
“Tell me why I shouldn't kill you all right now,” I demanded as I drew my pistol and held it in the air. “Give me one good reason.”
“Because Avos was never going to get justice,” said the one who seemed to be in charge.
I paused mid-stride, staring him down. “How the hell do you know something like that?”
“Because my contacts in Parliament told me,” he confessed, lifting his chin slightly in defiance. “Decker’s contacts on the planet were already weaseling him out of trouble again. If they even went through with the trial, it would have been rigged.
“Bullshit,” I retorted.
“It's true.” The kid shrugged. “We had to act fast or he'd have gotten away with murder—again.”
Even though he spoke with confidence, I found his words difficult to believe.
“Siggy?” I asked, never taking my eyes off the kid. “Private channel.”
“Yes, sir?” answered the AI through the remote comm in my ear, rather than the speaker system.
“What data can you get me on the Avos court records for Decker?”
“Searching. One moment,” responded Sigmond.
“You’ll see,” said the young man. “I’m not bullshitting you.”
“We’ll see about that,” I said.
Sigmond chimed in a moment later. “According to court records active as of two hours ago, he is wanted on twelve counts of murder.”
“Twelve counts?” I paused, frowning with confusion. “That’s not right. Check again. When we got the job, it was over thirty.”
“I’m afraid the current total is indeed twelve, sir.” Sigmond’s tone was apologetic now, subtle as the change might sound. I had grown used to his shifts over time, however, and had even taught him a few myself. “I’ve fact-checked that against other public records on Avos.”
“Well?” said the apparent leader. “Was I right?”
“Let’s just say you weren’t wrong,” I said, turning a nearby chair around and taking a seat. “Now keep talking.”
4
“Who the hell are you?” I asked. “How do you know so much about Decker?”
“I'm Edwin. Let’s start with that.”
Ruby scoffed. “Just tell him everything, why don’t you?”
“First names don't matter much to me,” I told him. “Give me family names, home worlds, professions. Tell me who you really are and what the hell you’re doing here?”
“You kidnapped us,” said Ruby.
I didn’t bother looking at her. “I mean, why were you after Decker?”
“What he’s already said is more than you deserve to know,” Hunter snapped, pulling against the cuffs.
His chair slid an inch forward from the force of it, and the metal clanked in his hands as he fought to get himself out of the seat. Beside him, Ruby tensed too, no doubt eager to hop up the moment she could break free and come at me.
Defensive. Easily riled up. Clearly emotional and driven by anger. These kids were either stupid, or they all had a death wish.
I just shook my head in frustration. They had killed Decker, which made them a problem.
Of the three, only Edwin had managed to keep an even head and stay cool, despite the tense si
tuation. Though I’d had my suspicions before, I was now getting an even clearer picture of who the leader was here.
“Stop it,” said Edwin, chiding the others. “You’ve both tried getting out of those chairs, and it’s never going to happen without him uncuffing us.”
Both of them stilled, relaxing a hair.
“Edwin, he doesn't need to know this shit,” snapped Hunter. “This is family business.”
“That’s enough,” snapped Edwin, casting a brief sidelong glance at him to shut him up.
Hunter grimaced and leaned back.
“We have to be honest here,” said Edwin, his gaze darting between Ruby and Hunter. “If we want to get out of this, we have to tell him the truth. You know what this guy is, right?”
Edwin paused, but neither of them answered.
“What am I, Edwin?” I asked, my voice dangerously low as I dared him to say something stupid.
The kid returned his attention to me, his jaw tensing as he held my gaze. “You’re a Renegade, aren’t you?”
I was annoyed by how much this kid had figured out. It was tough to keep a poker face, but I managed to suppress most of my surprise. “And how the hell do you know that?”
“Knowing things is all I’m good at,” admitted Edwin. “I’m not much of a fighter… More of a strategist, if you get my meaning.”
“You’re not that bad,” said Ruby with a small shrug.
I raised one eyebrow in surprise. “She talks?”
In answer, Ruby just chuckled.
“Kid, you ain’t lying. I saw your shots back on the station,” I said to Edwin.
Edwin shrugged.
“Shut your mouth,” said Hunter, a muscle ticking in his jaw. “You mess with him, you mess with us, and—”
I pointed at the cloth hanging loosely around his neck. “If you say one more stupid thing, I will shove this gag in your mouth again and never take it out.”
Hunter’s jaw snapped shut, though his nostrils flared as he fought to keep it that way.
At least the idiot wasn’t talking anymore. I could handle angry expressions. Listening to stupid was a lot more challenging.
“The job to detain Decker was placed on the Renegade network,” said Edwin as he redirected us back to his original point. “It’s not a massive leap to assume what your occupation is.”
I rested my hands on my knees and leaned forward until we were eye level. “Too much knowledge isn’t a great thing, Edwin. That’s a dangerous game out here in the Deadlands.”
“I’m aware,” he said, meeting my gaze without a hint of fear.
“Huh,” I muttered, then chuckled as I turned my back on him.
“See?” asked Edwin as he returned his attention to Ruby and Hunter. “He's a Renegade. He doesn't care what we do. Once we tell him what happened, he'll understand.”
“I wouldn't make assumptions like that if I were you,” I warned. “I sure as hell care that you killed my bounty and cost me a job.”
“Look, just listen to me for a minute and you’ll understand,” said Edwin. “The three of us are members of the Carson family. We’re from Avos.”
I paused, looking at him in surprise. “Carson family? Why do I know that name?”
“Damnit, Edwin,” muttered Hunter, fidgeting in his seat.
Silent as ever, Ruby just grimaced.
“You know the name because it’s famous,” explained Edwin. “The Carson Crime Family.”
It took a second to process that, but it brought a fresh smile to my face. “Well, don’t that just beat the sweat off a dog’s back,” I said.
Their secret was out, and I didn’t even have to break any fingers—and what a secret it was. A hotheaded Deadlands crime family tied up on my ship with a murderous streak.
Fantastic. This could mean more money than before.
“Dogs don’t sweat,” said Ruby.
I looked at her. “What?”
“They pant. Dogs don’t sweat. Don’t you know anything?”
I waved my gun at her, mockingly, and then turned back to Edwin. “Alright, Eddy boy, let’s hear the rest.”
“Am I right in guessing you don’t know much about our family?” asked Edwin.
I shook my head. I didn't know a damn thing about them, and I usually kept away from the crime families operating and thriving within the moral gray area that was the Deadlands. I knew of a couple family names offhand—the truly notorious ones—but not Carson. It wasn't like they were famous or well-known for anything. If anyone knew them at all, it was probably just the people who lived on their planet.
“I didn't expect you to,” confessed Edwin with a small shrug. “There are only a handful of us. Hunter, Ruby, and me, we're siblings, and many of the people Decker was going to be tried for killing were our family.”
Edwin’s voice caught, and he briefly looked away as he cleared his throat of his momentary weakness.
His grief, almost perfectly hidden. Anger too.
It was all too clear this had been about revenge.
“Our family has always had connections to Parliament,” confessed Edwin. “We've always had a sort of symbiotic relationship with the law. We help the planet's economy, we create jobs, and they turn their head to the, uh”—Edwin paused, searching his brain momentarily for the right word— “less than legal aspects of the family business.”
“What does this have to do with Decker?” I pressed.
Edwin didn’t seem bothered by the interruption and continued on. “No justice was going to come for us because Decker always gets away with his crimes. He used to brag about how no one could ever pin him down, that and those mysterious connections to people whose names he never gave. They were the ones who got him out of trouble, every time. We should have known better. It was just a matter of time before he turned on us, and we didn’t see it coming.” The kid shook his head, his shoulders drooping.
“Turned on you?” I interrupted. “You knew him?”
“Unfortunately.” Edwin’s lips thinned and his eyes glossed over with some distant memory.
“How?” I pressed, crossing my arms as he evaded the question. “Why would Decker kill anybody in your family?”
“He was a business partner for a long time,” confessed Edwin. “Seven years. I always hated him. All of us did.” He nodded toward Hunter and Ruby, who wore hooded expressions. “One day he sold us out to the Union for a hefty payday. He got our entire family killed, seventeen of them, including our nephew.”
“Mitch was just a kid,” said Hunter quietly. “He didn’t deserve that.”
“We saw the security tapes,” continued Edwin, unable to look me in the eye. “Union Spec Ops descended on the houses without even a warning. No one had any chance. They weren't told to surrender, and the Union gunned them all down in their sleep.”
I wasn’t sure I bought it, even with Edwin getting teary-eyed. There had to be a piece of the story missing, and I wasn’t sure how to get it.
“I ran a search while they were speaking, sir,” informed Sigmond through the ear comm. “According to publicly available data on the gal-net, it appears they are telling the truth. Though I cannot confirm the Union was involved, there were two witnesses who said the same. Local papers ran several stories on it, but most dismissed the witnesses as unreliable. That being said, there is one confirmed child among the dead.”
I said nothing, letting Sigmond’s words sink in as I thought about what he’d just said. I had no doubts that some, if not all of this was true. The Union did shit like this all the time, so creating an alternative narrative with the local media wasn’t new and it certainly felt like the right move for them. I’d seen enough of this before to know whether to believe it, and I did.
As much as I didn’t want to.
“What’s your name?” asked Edwin.
“Captain.”
“Well, Captain, if you had delivered Decker alive, he would’ve been let go within a few days. And who knows? Maybe he would’ve come after y
ou. You’re a Renegade, so I’m sure you did your homework, but he’s got a pretty deep network of connections to draw from, many of which are totally off the grid. He's never been held accountable for anything he’s done. We probably saved your life today.”
“Don’t flatter yourself, kid.”
Decker might have found a way to get out of the arrest, but he’d know better than to come after me. Not if he had any sense. Renegades aren’t held responsible for what their clients do, and someone like Decker ought to have known that.
“Why would the Union care?” I asked, crossing my arms as I settled into my stance.
“We're just smugglers,” answered Edwin. “We don't deal with the slave trade or anything. That's always been our rule. Mostly illegal liquor, stolen goods, some of the lighter drugs. Mostly what we steal comes from ships passing through the border. We had a pretty good operation going.”
“Until Decker betrayed us,” interrupted Hunter.
“Father was getting suspicious,” agreed Edwin with a nod. “Especially toward the end. He regretted getting mixed up with Decker in the first place. Decker kept trying to push him to do darker stuff, like trafficking or training Ruby as an assassin and loaning her to the highest bidder. Thankfully it never got that far, but she has a knack for hand to hand combat.”
Ruby frowned, and I couldn't tell if it was disappointment or disgust.
“Siggy?” I asked.
“Not much is publicly available on the Carson crime family, I’m afraid,” answered the AI. “However, what I’ve found thus far corroborates with the notion of smuggling and petty theft.”
I looked over at Edwin, ready to poke holes in his story. “How did the Union miss you three?”
“We were on a smuggling run through the Sarkonian Empire,” he recalled. “It took longer than expected because of a run-in with local law enforcement, but we evaded them. We were supposed to be at the house when the hit happened, and we got word as we were nearing Avos that we had to turn back. We never even got to say goodbye.”
From the flash of pain I saw mirrored in each of their faces, I knew that wasn’t a lie.