Caden didn’t reply, but his eyes hardened until they were practically diamonds and his shoulders went rigid. Apollo’s calm, cool attitude had disappeared so quickly it was like a flash flood through a hot desert. Before her wasn’t a calculating man; he was frightened. Not of Taav―otherwise he would never have tried to blackmail them in the first place―but of something else.
No, she realized. Not something else. Someone else.
“You’re afraid of Eladia,” she whispered. “That’s why you don’t want to help us. That’s why you’re looking for evidence, isn’t it? Against her. Against Eladia.”
Apollo spun at her, cheeks red hot from his rage. “I’m sure it doesn’t occur to you self-centered morons that the men back there weren’t actually after you, does it?”
“Occurred to me,” Riordan pouted.
“You mean they were there for you?” Kita asked. “What the hell did you do?”
“I made some very powerful people very angry. And now I run. Because the UDA wants me to stay in this game so I can trade information to them and help their people at the risk of my own life. So forgive me if I don’t really give a shit about what you want; or don’t. I couldn’t care less what you think of me.”
“That sounds familiar,” Aralyn muttered.
Apollo’s chest heaved with anger after he was finished. The cabin grew quiet. All of them knew what that felt like. Aralyn held up her hands in a peace offering.
“Taav’s dangling us as bait, too,” she told him. “We’ve got no backup until we produce results. And if we die, that’s just a couple more criminals for them to mark off their ‘wanted’ list. We understand. Honestly.”
“And Eladia is one scary bitch from Helios,” Kita added, in what Aralyn assumed was meant to be sympathy.
Apollo blew out a breath and nodded, slowly regaining his composure and straightening his jacket. “There’s going to be an… auction… there tomorrow. It’s the only time that ship will be accessible for the next three months. And on that ship is a room belonging to one E. Galven. Inside of that room is a safe that may contain information.”
“So we get to go in, pretend we’re interested in buying people and then do… what?” Kita asked. “Because I feel like you’re leaving something out on purpose. It’s not going to be easy getting into Eladia’s personal room on board her own ship. Won’t there be guards?”
“Yes,” Apollo admitted. “But those who win a bid are allowed to travel below to the lower rooms to… inspect their goods. We may have to solidify our reason to be there and win one of the auctions. And also… the men cannot come.”
“What?” Caden spat. “Absolutely the hell not. You think I’m going to let you walk in there with Kita and Aralyn with no way for us to protect them if you fuck something up?”
Apollo put a hand to his forehead as if explaining this to Caden pained him. “Spector, you are everywhere now. Every criminal and bounty hunter knows your face, inner or outer system. You walk in there and we will be dead inside of thirty seconds.”
Caden ground his jaw, the vein in his neck jumping errantly. He woyldn’t admit that their informant was right, even if he understood that for himself.
“I can do this with you, alone,” Aralyn said. “Kita doesn’t have to go in if she doesn’t want to.”
Kita’s face had gone pale ever since Apollo mentioned the slavery ring, and Aralyn wasn’t sure if she would be able to go through with it. She’d spent seven years as someone’s orachal slave; she’d given enough. But Kita shook her head like she was trying to clear some old painful memories.
“I can do it. You’ll need backup, Ari, and I still don’t trust this guy, no matter how hot he is,” she said. “No offense.”
“None taken. Perhaps I can earn your favor in other ways,” Apollo told her with a smirk. “Insults aren’t the only thing my tongue is good at.”
In front of the computer console, Riordan glared at him but didn’t say anything, choosing instead to jam his glasses back up on his nose. He returned to scanning the system screen, face blank, eyes narrow.
Kita’s eyes went wide and she laughed before shaking her head. “You might be hot, but you’re not that bright.”
Riordan’s shoulders relaxed a bit, but he still cast suspicious glances over to Apollo. Caden looked like he wanted to throw in something additionally, but he kept his mouth shut. Aralyn was glad that he hadn’t tried to talk them out of it, even if he wasn’t happy with the idea of sending them into a slavery den without backup.
“Give us the coordinates, lover boy,” said Aralyn, “and let’s go.”
Chapter Seven
The ship was located in a desolate portion of space about halfway between Uranus and Neptune’s orbits when they arrived. It felt like they were completely out of sorts in a UDA vehicle on its own out in known trafficker territory, but there didn’t seem to be anyone too bothered to have them there, within visible distance of their target. Luckily, the Phantom itself was less conspicuous than Caden’s previous ship since it didn’t have the telltale markings on it that classified it as a UDA vessel. The only identifier on it at all was its name, written in block letters across the side. The ship in the distance looked almost like a yacht, complete with an open deck surrounded by the telltale purple glint of a holo-field.
Though it was obvious they were waiting before going in, no one seemed bothered by their presence. Still, being so close to a group of kill-happy slave traders in a UDA vehicle made Aralyn more than a little jumpy. Caden paced the area between the doorway in their bedroom and the opposite wall, completely failing to hide his nervousness.
“You don’t have to do this,” he said, turning to face Aralyn. “We can find another way.”
She said nothing for a moment, choosing instead to touch his face with her hand. He closed his eyes as if it pained him, hands clasping at air.
“Let me help you. There must be something I can do. Last time you went in alone, you wound up back in Tartarys. …You still cry yourself awake some nights. I don’t want that to be your life anymore.”
“We don’t have a choice,” Aralyn told him, grabbing for his arm. “We spent six months looking for any ‘in’ we could find, and here’s one about to be dropped in our laps. We can’t pass this by. I’ll never get Tartarys out of my head; I know that. But I will do whatever it takes to survive, no matter what, no matter how much I don’t like the circumstances. You know that.” He let her hold his hand for a moment before pulling away, almost like he was helpless to do anything else.
It was rare these days to see the pain and fear beneath Caden’s façade of anger and the burning rage he had against his father. Sometimes Aralyn felt like she saw the old him again, but other times he might as well have been an entirely different person. She knew that it was his concern for her not coming back that made him shove her away; but it still hurt. She blinked back the tears trying to surface and forced a smile she didn’t feel.
“You were willing to give everything for this cause, and I am, too. I have to get Kragg back. We have to get to your father and to Eladia. We can stop this.” She stepped forward and grabbed his hand, refusing to let go this time. “Just trust me to make the right call, okay?”
“It’s not you I don’t trust,” he insisted. “That guy is up to no good. I can feel it.”
“I know it seems… less than optimal,” Aralyn admitted. “And I don’t trust him as far as I can throw him, but if what he says is true, then we have to get to that safe.”
“And if it isn’t true?”
Aralyn didn’t hesitate. “Then I put a shotgun shell between his eyes.”
Caden rested his forehead against hers, taking in a deep breath and kissing her brow. “Come back in one piece, okay? Or else I’m storming the ship to get you.”
Aralyn grinned. “You got it.”
He swayed on his feet, putting a hand out to steady himself.
“Caden, what’s going on? You okay?”
A loud knock sounded at the door before
he could respond and Kita opened it, forgetting to wait for invitation. Again. “Hey, we’re leaving in two. You ready for this?”
At least she knocked this time.
“Yeah,” said Aralyn, then shook her head. “Actually, no. Not at all. How are you?”
Kita shrugged. Unlike Caden, it was easy to read her, even in the worst of circumstances. Fear pinched tightly around the corners of her eyes. She seemed a ghost of her former vivacious self. Facing down inner demons was no walk in the park, Aralyn knew, but these demons could actually hurt them. Something they were both all too aware of.
“I’m going through with it,” Kita said instead of answering the question.
Aralyn nodded, knowing better than to challenge her on the subject. They both wanted nothing to do with this; that much was obvious. But she was worried that reality might set in for one or both of them once they were on the ship and things would quickly collapse.
“Let’s go,” Caden said, not making eye contact as he stepped through the doorway into the general living space.
Aralyn put the shotgun back into its holster where it rested on a wall hook and pulled her jacket on before slipping her pistols into the belt at her hip. Apollo had assured both of them that guns wouldn’t be confiscated on the station since too many of the slavers already distrusted each other, but she didn’t want to risk taking the old-Earth gun in with her. The modded pistols would have to do the trick.
And while both Kita and Aralyn would have weapons, Apollo himself did not. He’d decided after some furious last-minute discussions that the two of them posing as his bodyguards wouldn’t be at all surprising. And although this meant that in a firefight they’d be targeted because of their guns, it also meant that he would be the only one bidding, which was fine by everyone else.
At the rear of the ship, attached to the open deck where people were drinking and schmoozing was a landing pad where several other ships had already docked. The vessel looked like a massive sailing ship, with a rounded bottom and several floors below the deck. It had clearly been built to never land on a station but to only dock in a port from time to time, likely to resupply, like some kind of space-faring cruise ship.
None of the people on board really seemed the type to be orachal peddlers, but then, it was a social event for them in a way. As they descended, Aralyn spied women wearing expensive jewelry, men in suits, and several people dressed like she and Kita were, carrying weapons to guard the guests and potential purchasers in their finery.
“I guess we won’t be as out of place as I thought,” she muttered to Kita as they approached to land, eyeing one of the particularly hulking bodyguards resting large, scarred hands on top of enormous handguns on either side of his hips.
“That’s still not reassuring,” Kita replied, crossing her arms.
Aralyn didn’t bother to agree with her, though she felt roughly the same.
They landed the Phantom in one of the open bays and Apollo stood by the door, looking at them with something akin to excitement on his face.
“Gentlemen, we will return in no less than two hours. Bidding starts in fifteen Terra Standard, and we should be in the room in about half an hour after.”
“And if you’re not back in two hours,” Caden said, “I’ll be coming to get you. Personally.”
Apollo acquiesced with a slight nod of his head.
He, Kita, and Aralyn lined up at the door, and Aralyn fought the nervous tightness in her gut that threatened to overwhelm her. She breathed deeply, trying to focus herself. She couldn’t show fear; not to these monsters. She eyed Apollo. It didn’t help that they couldn’t quite trust him, either. She wondered how fast he’d turn on them if a better offer came up. Would it even take two seconds for him to flip?
“Let’s get this over with already,” said Kita, pushing past them and extending the gangplank to the wooden surface below. She walked down and turned, waiting for the others.
Aralyn followed her down the ramp, and Apollo took up the rear, looking every bit the protected rich socialite that the rest of those present were.
Too bad they’re all just slaving pieces of shit, Aralyn fumed as they made their way over to the open area where all the other socialites were standing. The deck had been decorated with lights and holo-streamers, looking oddly festive for such a dark occasion. Servants in red vests circled the crowd, offering succulent treats on silver platters like cranberry and goat cheese crostinis, oysters on the half shell, beluga caviar on tiny spoons with crème fraiche, eggs, and capers along the side. Aralyn could tell just from looking that none of it was farmed algae or vat meat, either. It was all real, and as much as she hated the overt display of wealth, she found her mouth watering at the thought of eating something that hadn’t been grown in a giant aluminum can.
Other servants carried silver platters with sparkling water, sangria, and flutes of champagne. The rich indulged in these pleasantries, while those with them did not. She wondered if they were under orachal compulsion or just well-paid mercenaries, like she and Kita were pretending to be. There were already dozens of people gathered around a small stage to the starboard side where a floating lens bobbled above them, focused on the empty platform.
“That’s for the dark bidders,” said Apollo when he caught Aralyn looking at it. “Those who don’t want to appear in person.”
“Oh, you mean there are people who don’t want you to know that they’re slave-dealing pieces of shit? What a surprise,” Aralyn muttered back, rolling her eyes.
From the crowd, an older blonde woman wearing an ill-fitting green dress approached them, a guard by her side who looked bored and annoyed as he clutched a large assault weapon between his hands, not bothering to hide his open hostility. He looked fresh-faced for someone with such a foreboding presence.
The woman was wearing a chain of diamonds around her neck, each as big as her eyes. Her fine hair had been pulled up into a fancy coif, though it was frizzed in areas like she’d done it herself… and had no idea what she was doing. She smiled, revealing yellowing teeth, and extended an arm to Apollo as she approached.
Apollo’s face lit up and he hurried forward to take her hand in his, pressing the back of her hand to his lips. “Madame DeMarch,” he said. “It has been too long. And I see you brought Nialls with you.” He looked the younger man over, but the guard didn’t spare a single glance his direction.
DeMarch’s smile broadened. “Apollo van Dien. I didn’t think you’d have the balls to show up here again. Are you really back in the game?”
“I’m here to… peruse. If something catches my eye, wonderful, but if not…” He shrugged, so nonchalant about bidding on human life that for one second Aralyn’s stomach threatened to jump into her throat.
“I see. Well, good luck. And don’t bid against me,” DeMarch told him, leaning in close like she was divulging a secret.
Her eyes never once flickered over to Kita and Aralyn, despite the fact that they were standing on each side of Apollo. Aralyn bristled. It was clear they were being dismissed as “the help.” But as much as she hated to admit it, his plan was solid so far, and being ignored would be beneficial to them. Her bodyguard, Nialls, however, gave them a scathing once over that could have peeled the dried oil straight off an engine block.
DeMarch made her way back to the larger group and Apollo followed suit, heading into the crowd, Aralyn and Kita close on his heels.
“Who the hell was that?” asked Kita, watching her go. “She seriously smelled like rotten grapefruit. Is that a perfume, or do old people really just smell like that?”
Apollo walked with his head tilted slightly over his shoulder so they could still hear him. “Madame DeMarch is the delegate that represents Eladia’s interests in her absence. She’s also the chair for the bids and the mouthpiece for the dark bidders. Think of her what you might, but never speak it aloud. If she doesn’t like you, there will be no chance to place a bid.”
“I’m more concerned about her hired muscle,�
� Aralyn said. “He didn’t seem to care for us. At all.”
“That’s Madame DeMarch’s son,” Apollo said. “He’s been protecting her for nearly twenty years. I wouldn’t worry about him though. He’s never actually been in a situation where he had to use that particular gun. Plus, if it comes down to it, I know all of his ticklish spots.” He chuckled and walked onward without breaking stride.
“I’m starting to wonder if there’s anyone you haven’t slept with,” Aralyn said.
Apollo turned to her with a wink and a knowing grin. “Oh, I can think of a few.”
Her stomach flipped like it had hit a springboard and she felt her face flaming.
Kita leaned over and whispered to her, “You’ve got to admit: That guy is smooth.”
“No,” Aralyn said, loud enough that she hoped he could hear it, “he’s greasy.” She hated the fact that a single look from him could get her to react like that. She’d been around hot guys before, but none of them had ever made her face heat with a wink.
Frankly, it was annoying.
The group was filled with plenty of people making small talk and laughing politely at one joke or another, and some of them were discussing recent conquests and acquisitions like regular people might discuss the weather. And while the rich paid no heed to the hired guns around them, each of the guards were quietly sizing up the room, trying to figure out who would be the biggest threat if it came down to it.
Aralyn was already most concerned about DeMarch’s enormous bodyguard despite what Apollo had said, in part because she was never certain if he was lying to her or not. But it was easy to see that really, everyone with a gun was just as much a potential problem to them as he was. It didn’t matter where the energy bolt came from if it was aiming their direction.
Apollo weaved his through the groups of people, chatting ever closer to the empty stage on the right side of the ship. Aralyn and Kita kept silent, making sure not to draw any attention to themselves as they went. Soon after they got to the center, the lights on the ship dimmed and the only bright lights were centered on the stage, where Madame DeMarch, her bodyguard, Nialls, and a frail man in a light gray suit entered the spotlight, waving to the crowd. Polite applause broke out as they smiled under the too-bright lights.
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