Aurora Blazing

by Jessie Mihalik

A wrinkle appeared in Riccardo’s forehead as he frowned down at me. “Rescue?”

  “My brother lives, does he not? As far as I’m concerned, that’s rescue enough. I will pay you, you will return him, and we will all forget this unfortunate incident ever happened.”

  “And if I refuse?”

  I might not be able to effectively wield Mother’s imperious stare, but I had Father’s icy, murderous glower down pat. “Do not refuse.”

  Riccardo’s right eye flickered, the tiniest sign of his unease. I’d backed him into a corner. He would attack soon, unable to stand not being in control. I had to turn that attack back on him before he realized what I’d done.

  “Your brother is dead. Your guard is dead. And here you are, all alone with me. Perhaps I’ll keep you until I tire of you. Then you will become my party’s most prized entertainment.”

  I let the words bounce off me, betraying nothing. I gave him a deadly smile. “Are you sure it wouldn’t be more accurate to say that you’re all alone with me? Give me my brother and I will not only let you live, I’ll pay a royal ransom.”

  His confident smirk telegraphed his intentions as clearly as words. It had been a long time since I’d had a self-defense tutor, but I’d trained for years. Muscle memory kicked in as he lunged for me.

  I wasn’t as graceful as I had been before Gregory, but I managed. I dropped the clutch and stepped into him instead of away. He wasn’t expecting the move and didn’t have time to counter as I drove my knee sharply into his balls. I stepped back as he gasped out a curse and crumpled.

  I drew the tiny dagger from my bodice and grabbed Riccardo by the hair, wrenching him up to his knees. I pressed the sharp blade into his throat deeply enough to draw blood.

  “Move and die,” I said.

  “You need me to save your brother,” he sneered.

  “There are more Silvas. You are not essential. Where is my guard?”

  “I told you, he’s dead. You’re next. Then I’ll make sure your fucking brother suffers before he dies.”

  Ferdinand was alive! I kept my emotions under a tight rein.

  A commotion in the room next door drew my attention. Riccardo tried to break away, but he misjudged the hold I had on his hair. However, his struggles meant I didn’t have time to swing him around as a shield, and without a free hand, I couldn’t activate my cuff. I pressed the knife deeper. “Tell them not to shoot.”

  The door burst open and I tightened my grip, but no one entered.

  “Get this crazy bitch off of me!” Riccardo demanded.

  I jerked his head back and slid the knife deep enough that the tip disappeared into a well of red blood. “You’re only alive because you might be useful. Call off your dogs.”

  I watched the door, tensed to dive behind the meager cover Riccardo provided. A familiar profile flashed into view for a second as the person on the other side of the door assessed the situation, then Ian appeared, missing his coat and mask and covered in blood.

  Ian’s lip was split, his nose was bleeding, and blood dripped sluggishly off of his left hand. On his torso, red stains stood out vividly against his white shirt. As I watched, the largest one spread. If all of that blood was his, then we were in deep, deep trouble.

  “Impossible,” Riccardo breathed. He tried to jerk away, but I tightened my hold and dug the dagger in a little deeper. More blood slid down the front of his neck and he swallowed, then held still.

  Relief crashed into me. Ian was injured, but he wasn’t dead.

  “Where is Lord Ferdinand?” Ian asked in a deceptively soft voice. He favored his right side, but he still moved with most of his usual predatory grace.

  “How did you get past the guards?” Riccardo whimpered.

  “I killed them,” Ian said without inflection. “You will be next unless you cooperate.”

  As Ian neared, Riccardo leaned back into my legs, trying to escape.

  “Let him go,” Ian said.

  “I didn’t search him,” I warned.

  “He’s not going to try anything because he knows I’ll kill him,” Ian said. His voice was still too flat, much like his expression.

  “I don’t think he’s that smart.”

  Ian took the decision out of my hands. He transferred his blaster to his left hand and wrapped his right around Riccardo’s neck and pulled him up. He drove him back against the wall, holding him high enough that Riccardo was on tiptoe just to breathe.

  “He is definitely not that smart,” Ian growled. He held out the blaster. “Trade me and watch the door.”

  I took the blaster and gave him the short knife. “Ferdinand is alive,” I said. “Find out where. You have House permission to do whatever it takes.”

  For a brief moment, Ian’s expression morphed into familiar exasperation. It was a welcome change from the blankness he’d been sporting. Of course I knew he didn’t need my permission, but perhaps Riccardo did not.

  “We don’t have Ferdinand,” Riccardo whined.

  “Then I suppose you are no longer required,” Ian said. His knuckles whitened as he tightened his grip on Riccardo’s neck.

  “Wait,” Riccardo gasped. “We don’t have him anymore. But I know where he is.” When Ian didn’t loosen his grip, Riccardo continued, “We sold him!”

  “You sold my brother?” I questioned, my voice soft with menace. “To whom?”

  Riccardo rolled desperate eyes to me. Whatever he saw in my expression made him flinch. “Swear to me that you’ll let me go if I tell you.”

  I stared at him, trying to master my rage. “I will let you go if you tell me everything you know. Quickly.” After all, if I’d found him once, I could do it again.

  “We were paid an enormous amount of money to snatch Ferdinand from Earth. We were supposed to deliver him to our contact, but they never showed.”

  “Leaving you with a huge liability,” Ian said. “Why sell him? Why not kill him?”

  “Because we assumed our contact wanted him dead but didn’t want any paper trails leading back to them. And while the Consortium might eventually overlook a kidnapping, murdering an heir is something else altogether. Plus, we don’t work for free and the second half of our payment didn’t go through.”

  “Who ordered the grab?”

  “I don’t know,” Riccardo whined. “It was all done anonymously.” Ian tightened his grip and Riccardo rushed to add, “We think it was someone high up in the Consortium, but we don’t know.”

  “Who has my brother?” I bit out.

  Riccardo wavered. “Remember your vow,” he said. He swallowed. “We needed to get rid of him quickly and quietly. To put him somewhere he could be retrieved if needed, but otherwise wouldn’t be found. Ever. And we needed someone who wouldn’t ask too many questions during the transfer. That’s harder than you might think.”

  If he was rambling this much, then it must be bad. “Who is it?” I demanded.

  He glanced away and whispered, “We sold Ferdinand to MineCorp.”

  Fury blazed bright. “You sold my brother, the heir to House von Hasenberg, to a group of slavers?”

  “They prefer indentured—” Riccardo stopped speaking with a strangled wheeze, and I didn’t bother to stop Ian. MineCorp mined some of the most dangerous sectors in the universe, largely with a force of slave labor masquerading as “indentured servants.”

  Some people, like my brother, were sold to them under false pretenses, but some signed up voluntarily, lured by the company’s slick spiel. When you had less than nothing, the promise of food and shelter was tempting, especially to those who didn’t fully understand the contract. Thus it became a complex legal tangle, one the Consortium had no particular desire to untangle—not when profits were so high.

  “Where did they send Ferdinand?” I demanded. “I’m assuming you disabled his identity chip?”

  Riccardo gasped something unintelligible.

  “Let him breathe,” I told Ian.

  Ian loosened his fingers and Riccardo sucked in air.
“I don’t know where Ferdinand is. We didn’t want to know. We sold him through a series of intermediaries. His chip was removed and replaced.” When Ian’s fingers tightened again, Riccardo whined, “His new name is Nando Black. That’s all I know, I swear. Now keep your promise.”

  Ian shot me a questioning look. Technically, I had already let Riccardo go, so my vow was met. However, I understood the true meaning behind the vow and promises were important to me. Just because a loophole gave me an out didn’t mean it would be honorable to use it.

  But honor and desire didn’t always match up. “Don’t kill him,” I forced out with a grimace.

  “Letting him live is a mistake,” Ian growled. Riccardo began to struggle as his throat closed off completely. Ian kept him pinned to the wall with effortless strength. It would be so easy to forget the spreading blood on the front of his shirt.

  “It is not a mistake because he will not cause us any trouble. If he does, I will personally ensure House von Hasenberg takes a much more active role in eradicating the Silva family one ship at a time.”

  Riccardo tried to nod, but I knew it was a lie. He wouldn’t let this insult go. I would have to deal with him sooner or later. But a promise was a promise. I sighed. “Knock him out and we’ll tie him up. Someone is bound to wander up here eventually, unless you killed all of the guards?”

  I meant it as a joke, but Ian grimaced and didn’t clarify one way or the other. My eyes widened. Surely not . . .

  Riccardo’s struggles slowed and stopped. Ian kept him pinned for another thirty seconds, then lowered him to the ground. “Do you have ties?” he asked, his voice rough.

  “No.”

  He stripped off Riccardo’s jacket and suspenders. He rolled Riccardo onto his stomach and wrenched his arms behind him. Ian used the suspenders to tie him hand and foot with quick efficiency.

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  “I’m fine.”

  So, in universally understood language, he was not fine. “Did you call the ship back?”

  “Yes, but Riccardo revoked our authorization. Alex is landing nearby and Aoife is going to meet us at the perimeter for an escort back.” Ian staggered to his feet and I rushed to brace my shoulder under his arm.

  “How many guards are between here and there?” I asked.

  “Fewer than there were,” Ian said. A glance at his face revealed a grim smile.

  “How many did you disable?”

  “We’ll take the stairs,” he said, changing the subject. “We’ll be able to hear anyone coming up.”

  Warm blood had soaked through my dress, so I decided now was not the time to argue. “I don’t suppose you saw a medkit on your way up? You’re bleeding badly.”

  “Tie his jacket around my waist,” Ian instructed as he took the blaster from me. “It’ll work until we make it to the ship.” He was starting to look gray, but the determined set of his mouth was familiar.

  I picked up Riccardo’s jacket and folded it to make a pad out of the front and back, then tied the arms tightly around Ian’s waist. He grunted but didn’t complain.

  I found my clutch and tucked my com down the front of my dress, then I activated the cuff on my left wrist by swiping my right hand over the smooth surface from inside to outside and back again. I kept my hand in place for two seconds until the cuff vibrated. It had enough power to repel up to eight shots. If Ian stayed close, he would be partially protected, but if he went down, we were sunk.

  “Let’s go,” I whispered, concern eating at me. Perhaps at the peak of my fitness I might’ve been able to carry Ian, but today I would be lucky if I could drag him on a smooth surface. We needed to get to Aoife as soon as possible.

  Ian set off with an unsteady gait. In the room next door, two guards and two techs lay unmoving. The techs had been shot in the head, while one guard had a hole through his chest and the other had been shot at close range with what appeared to be his own blaster.

  I closed my eyes at the destruction. I knew it had to happen, and I was no stranger to death, but so much carnage turned my stomach. Holding my breath, I stopped and collected the extra blaster. Ian’s stance wobbled and his eyes were going glassy.

  “Stay with me, Ian,” I murmured. “I’m not leaving you and I can’t do this alone.”

  “If I go down, leave me.”

  “I won’t,” I said calmly. “So you better not go down.”

  Determination lit his gaze, but by the time we’d descended the stairs, Ian had taken to leaning heavily against me. I paused to give him a chance to catch his breath. Everywhere I looked, dead guards stared back with unblinking eyes. Ian had single-handedly taken out at least a dozen armed guards after being outnumbered three to one in close quarters.

  Speculation turned into suspicion. He was about the right age. And he knew Loch, though he tried to hide it. My eyes narrowed as the pieces snapped together. This entire time a member of the Genesis Project had been hiding directly under the Consortium’s collective noses.

  The Consortium had hunted Loch to the ends of the universe to cover up their little experiment and the fact that they had treated the project members as expendable and less than human. Ian had a good reason to hate everything about the Consortium. Was this his payback? Did he have something to do with Ferdinand’s disappearance?

  I spun around and planted my blaster in Ian’s chest. His eyes widened, but he didn’t move. “Did you betray Ferdinand?” I asked in a furious whisper. “Was this your doing from the beginning? Did you put a hit on me?”

  He blinked and some of the fuzziness cleared from his eyes. “No,” he said softly. “I did not betray you or your brother.”

  “But you must hate the Consortium.”

  His expression shuttered. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Don’t play dumb with me.”

  He sighed and the sound rattled dangerously, letting me know time was short. “Look around. If I wanted you dead, do you think I would need these imbeciles to do the job for me? I did not betray you, Bianca.”

  He moved surprisingly fast, knocking my blaster up toward the ceiling and spinning me around. His arms wrapped around me, trapping me with my back to his chest, the blaster pointing harmlessly away from us. I struggled, but I would have better luck breaking out of triple-max prison restraints.

  “I did not betray you and I will not hurt you,” Ian said. “But I will not let you expose me with your wild theories, either. Promise me that you’ll keep any knowledge about me to yourself.”

  “I could lie.”

  “You could, but you won’t. Promise me, Bianca.”

  “And if I don’t?” I pressed.

  “Bianca,” he growled and gave me a little shake. “We’re not leaving until you promise. Do you want to kill me?”

  “Maybe I do,” I bluffed.

  “I don’t believe you,” he whispered into my ear. I shivered. “Promise me, Bianca.”

  “I will, if you’ll promise me something in return.”

  I felt him tense against me, then curse under his breath. “What is it?”

  “Promise me you’ll let me help until Ferdinand is found. And not from Serenity or wherever else you plan to dump me. I go where you go and we find him together.”

  He sighed again, but I could tell his resistance was wavering.

  “You owe me this much, at least,” I said.

  “Very well, if you promise to keep anything you may know about me to yourself forever, I’ll let you come with me to track down Ferdinand.”

  I could argue about who was coming with whom, but I decided to take what I could get. “I promise I won’t ever use any of your secrets against you,” I said quietly. It was a broader promise than he’d asked for, but trust was built slowly, one brick at a time.

  I didn’t have a good history with trust, but I would try, one more time. The thought of making another mistake terrified me down to my bones, and I didn’t know if I could recover again, not if Ian was the one who betraye
d me. I swallowed nervously as I waited for his answer.

  “Okay,” he agreed, letting me go. He staggered, then caught himself against the wall before he toppled. “I should’ve asked Aoife to bring me a dose of foxy.”

  Foxy was the street name for amphoxy, a mix of stimulants and painkillers. Soldiers used it to get wounded teammates back to safety or to complete an impossible mission. It tended to be a last resort because it overrode the pain receptors and made the user feel invincible, usually causing the soldier to end up more injured.

  “Where is she meeting us?” I asked.

  “North gate. We need to get moving.” The while I still can was unspoken, but I heard it nonetheless.

  For all of Ian’s injuries, he was still an impressive shot. In the next hallway, he shot a guard before I’d even realized someone was there. When another guard rounded the corner directly in front of us, Ian felled him with a single swift punch. I swallowed as I realized just how gently he’d treated me.

  Chapter 17

  We were almost outside when I stumbled and nearly went down as a wave of wireless signals drove a spike into my brain. I swallowed the urge to vomit. Either Riccardo had been found or something else big was happening. I tried to catch one of the messages but the effort made the nausea worse.

  “What’s wrong?” Ian whispered.

  “Nothing. But we need to move fast to the gate. Can you do it?”

  White lines of pain bracketed Ian’s mouth, but he just straightened and said, “Yes.”

  “Keep leaning on me. It’ll look like we’re out for a drunken stroll. The cuff will protect us for a little while.”

  We stepped out into chaos. The evening had deepened into night, but floodlights lit up the area. Fire flickered from our left, the direction of the spaceport, and armed guards ran to provide backup. No one paid any attention to us as Ian leaned deeper and deeper into my shoulder. By the time we made the gate, I was half carrying him.

  “Aoife?” I called.

  She stepped out from behind the gate column, clad in her combat armor. She slid open her helmet and I caught her frown. “Why are your coms down?”

  I touched my ear but the tiny earpiece was gone. “Things didn’t exactly go according to plan,” I said. “You’ll have to carry him.”