“For the right price. My current target has disappeared courtesy of Delcon’s fine government.”
Delcon was known across the galaxy for being a playground for the rich and infamous. Laws were flexible and sins covered if you had the money.
“I’m sure we can come to terms if you can find what we’re looking for,” Balastar said.
Jules smiled back at them from the holo. “I always find what I’m looking for eventually. Marco said this was a rush job.”
“That’s correct.” Balastar used his com to split the holo screen and project the Sandarian star system. “Some friends have been forcibly removed from the vicinity. They would have departed Sandaria on transport ships in the last three days. Those responsible wouldn’t want to be found. Marco spoke highly of your tracking skills.”
The sound of a keyboard accompanied Jules voice. “Sandaria, huh? That’s a three day trip in person, but I can code a spider and route it via the PortalNet. That critter can make it to the planet’s web somewhere within six to eight hours. From there I can get access to the spaceport’s databases, but it will be slow. Where are you guys now?”
Balastar gave Marco a nod, and the EP sent their interstellar coordinates.
Her eyes scanned her com before her fingers took off on her keyboard again. “Nice place to hang out undisturbed. All right, I can be there in about ten hours. Assuming the two interstellar portal jump-points work.” She mumbled a few things they couldn’t make out. “Fifteen thousand credits to start. If it goes long, it will cost more. Is that acceptable?”
“Yes,” Balastar said, without hesitating. “We’ll see you in ten hours.”
“Hm. Jump-points are failing left and right. I’ll contact Marco if there’s a problem.” The holo blanked out.
Balastar turned to Marco. “I hope she’s as good as she thinks she is.”
The affable EP just smiled. “She’s good all right.”
Balastar shook his head and retreated to his gym. He missed Kit with every fiber of his being, and not being able to find her was almost a physical pain. He needed her.
Jules made it to them a little over seven hours later. She had a Vector class interstellar cruiser. No markings but the call sign. It was clearly a private vessel and very expensive.
Balastar sent the docking code, and they waited for her by the airlock. The clamps snapped into place, and the buzz of the umbilical pressurizing the small lock signaled her presence before the doors opened. She wore black synth pants and a tucked-in tight-fitting, low cut T-shirt. She did indeed have curves, and was quite a bit taller than he expected.
“Hello boys.” She went directly to Marco and planted a kiss on him. He didn’t argue.
A second before Balastar interrupted, she broke off the kiss and extended her hand to Balastar.
“Jules Black. At your service.”
Balastar shook her hand. He liked the woman despite himself. He liked her even more when she held her hand out to Armond and held it there until he shook it.
“So, my spider’s getting access as we speak. As soon as it’s in, I can get to work.” She took in the interior of the ship. “Nice ship Balastar. Can I have a tour?”
“Sure,” Balastar said. There was nothing else for him to do.
Armond bowed out and said he’d be in the galley.
Jules handed him the bag slung over her shoulder. “That sounds like a good place to work from.”
Armond raised a brow but took the bag and left them.
“He’s nice,” Jules said.
Marco laughed. He was clearly excited to have Jules onboard.
A stab of jealousy shot through Balastar. It was irrational, but he was quickly learning that the bond between psi-mates didn’t always lend itself to clarity. “We’ll start with the bridge.”
Jules was appropriately impressed by the ship. Although from what he’d seen of hers, he had the feeling it wasn’t far behind on upgrades. He took them down to the cargo bay last. They’d just stepped out of the lift when he heard the unmistakable sound of a laser revving into fire mode.
He turned to find she had a weapon trained on him.
Marco raised his hands as well. “What’s up, Jules?”
She took a wide birth around the two men and made her way toward the Tiger. She ran her fingers along the belly of the craft. “There’s only one ship like this. You want to tell me what you’re doing with it?”
Balastar lowered his hands. “You know Kit?”
“I’m asking the questions. Now answer me.” She held her weapon trained on Balastar’s chest.
“She’s one of the people we’re looking for,” Balastar said.
“She’s also his psi-mate,” Marco added.
“She isn’t bonded.”
Balastar’s gut clenched. “She is now. She’s my mate, and you’re going to help me get her back. Her and her parents.”
Uncertainty fled across her face.
“Look, check with her grandmother.”
“What’s her grandmother’s name?”
Frack. Balastar realized he’d never actually learned her name. “I don’t know. It never came up, but Kit calls her Nana.”
The laser lowered a fraction. “What’s Kit’s real name? You must know that if you’re really her mate.”
“Kitayaná Athorika Durnar. Nana calls her Kita.”
Jules shoulders dropped, and she put her weapon back in the pocket in her pants. It rested nearly flat along her thigh, which is why he’d missed it.
Damn it. His focus on Kit was making him careless. He should have had the ship scan her the second she boarded. “I take it we’re good?”
“Yeah. Fill me in. On everything.”
Balastar and Marco caught her up to speed on the Portal Masters and Durgan’s theory about why the portals were failing. They covered the attack of Kit’s hometown, her parent’s abduction, Marco and Armond’s role as EPs for the Cavacent clan on Earth, and the hope of getting help from the GTO’s military.
“Wow. So they just took all these Vertans to Sandaria to use as they wanted. That’s messed up.”
“Very,” Balastar said, leading them back to the galley.
“So why’d they leave Sandaria?”
“We don’t know.” Balastar took a seat at the table.
Jules unpacked some things from her bag including a com interface. “Are you sure the GTO is clean? The fracking military did some bad shit over the years.”
“I trust Lord Cavacent,” Marco said.
“I do, too,” Balastar agreed. “He knows the supreme commander of the military personally and says he’s a good man. Things are changing, but you’re right about the past. It’s going to take years for things to settle and planets to trust again.”
Jules shook her head. “There’s an understatement.” She entered some commands with the keyboard, and a holo sprung up in the center of the table. “My critter’s almost there. I’ve got Sandaria’s media feeds.” Her eyes flew across the holo as she brought up screen after screen of feeds. “If anyone else noticed those ships took an unexpected trip, they aren’t saying anything about it openly. Once I’m in, I’ll check the internal chatter. It’s going to take some time. I’ll let you know when I find something.”
Balastar left her to it. The hours ticked by. Jules kept them updated. She found internal communication about problems at the planet-side spaceport. Cargo abandoned and an inbound ship not arriving. She was sure it had to do with their targets but so far hadn’t located specific information on the ships.
They sat eating in silence a few hours later when Jules spoke up.
“Got it. Sneaky bastards. They altered the records in the database. Did a good job of it, too, but there’s always a trail. I also found a bunch of internal threads. Sounds like Sandaria is on a slow path to disintegration. This isn’t the first set of screw-ups at the port. People are bribing port workers to get their goods out first, and there doesn’t seem to be much in the way of local law enforcement going on. I wouldn’t
want to live there right now. Maybe this is why the PMs left.”
Balastar was about to redirect her rambling when she got to the point.
“We’re looking for two ships. One’s an M-class transport and the other a large cargo vessel. They left five days ago, supposedly on separate paths, but they both used the same Interstellar Portal four and a half hours later.”
Balastar felt some hope for the first time in days. “Once we get through the portal, then what?” He refused to imagine what would happen if the portal failed on them.
“Then I scatter my spiders far and wide. Those ships are going somewhere, and when they register with the spaceport, we’ll have them.” She stood and stretched out. “Let’s get to that portal and make the jump. I’ll send out my bugs, and then we wait.” She tossed Marco a suggestive glance. “How about you, big boy? Want to ride with me?”
“Thought you’d never ask.” He left to get a bag, and Jules packed up her things.
Waiting was the last thing Balastar wanted to do, but at least they were making progress.
***
At the back of the resort, in what would have been a dance room or perhaps conference space, Loc and the other Portal Masters surrounded the monolith. The fear in his gut had started the moment they’d docked at the space station. The red glow present for five hundred years wasn’t returning. Not only that, the color that remained had changed to a deep blue. He kept his face neutral. The other PMs shot him a mix of looks. Everything from fear and confusion to outright anger.
How dare they? He burned with indignation at their insolence.
They’d assembled to attempt the first portal since arriving on Solorian. A simple anchor to an existing portal would provide the proof he needed that the device still functioned. He called them to order and initiated the process. As expected, he felt their collective psi merge and extend out toward the blue-pulsing object.
Normally, a welcoming psi would accept their presence, but now nothing. This felt like a locked door. “Concentrate, gentlemen. Let’s focus our efforts.” Loc could feel the increase in psi, and they attempted to connect to the monolith, but if anything, it now felt somehow repulsive. Hostile even? Regardless, it was failure.
Furtive glances darted his way.
Fear, shame, humiliation, and ultimately anger coursed through him. This wasn’t his fault. They’d had to leave Sandaria. He’d had no choice. Thoughts careened across his mind. All was not lost. He had the Vertans. He had control of the Torogs. That was all he needed. The idea hit him hard. It was all he needed. So what if the blasted thing wasn’t functioning? He didn’t require it. His mind reeled. He could easily take control over the Vertan’s manufacturing plants and a small cadre of Vertans themselves. Gods, why hadn’t they done this already? He had work to do. He’d acquire a larger cross-section of Vertans, then he’d release a bio-wipe on their planet. A smaller population would be easier to control. The loss of lives would be a small price to pay for the amount of power he would wield. This was the answer. His destiny. It all made sense now.
To Loc’s right, Tern cleared his throat, bringing his mind back to the matter at hand. Damage control was in order. “Do not let this temporary setback worry you. I expected as much with the relocation to a new planet. As you can see the core has changed. It must adjust to the new planet’s chemistry and location in the galaxy.” It was all fabricated lies, but it mattered not.
Loc gauged their reaction. Some of the men looked relieved, others skeptical, but they no longer concerned him. His future didn’t include these men. Loc excused them and waited until they were gone before locking the door behind him. He made his way to the front of the resort and through the lobby. Movement caught his eye, and he glanced up at the landing above to see the Vertan with the streak in her hair. Her gaze bore into him. He didn’t know how, but he was certain she knew the monolith no longer functioned. His throat tightened as he crossed the open space as quickly as possible. Time was short.
***
Kit had been pacing the hallway on her floor, stopping every few rounds to drop and do some pushups, when the head Portal Master strode across the lobby below. The other PMs had preceded him by a few minutes. Something was wrong. They were upset, but Loc appeared almost smug. The whole thing was off. She spun around and continued her pacing. The energy inside her was building faster than she could expend it. Fracking Burns had shown up and told her they’d be setting up a gym on the second floor, but it was going to take a few days. She had the odd sensation she didn’t have a few days. She rubbed her arms and kept pacing. It must be the separation from Balastar. It was screwing with her energy. She’d asked if she could run the stairs, but the goon refused.
They were limited to the third floor. It should have been enough. There were fifty rooms and only twenty-three people, plenty of space, so why did she feel so confined? She desperately wanted to go outside. Even the bitter cold would be a welcome change. Maybe she needed to use her psi more, burn off some of that excess. She scanned the hall, but there was nothing here she could move, so she returned to her room. She could rearrange the furniture a few dozen times. She started with the couch, lifting it with psi.
If Balastar were here, we could—
A foreign pulse of energy blasted through her. The couch spun out of control and slammed into the wall above the bed before crashing to the floor, obliterating the side table and lamp.
Dani and Ian came running from their room next door. “What happened?” They surveyed the damage. “Kit?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “I was trying to burn off some energy. Thought I’d rearrange the furniture a bit.” She turned to face them. “My psi exploded. I totally lost control.” That hadn’t happened since she was child, learning how to use her psi. The thought was terrifying. She focused on the couch and lifted it off the ground. What had she thought about before? Balastar. There was a blue flash in her mind, another burst of energy, and she was flying backward. She hit the wall and dropped to the floor on her ass. “Frack.” Something else had sparked through her mind. What was it?
The couch sat on its side.
“That’s enough,” Ian said.
Dani came and helped her to her feet. “What’s going on Kit?”
“Something is happening to my psi. I can’t control it. Every time I think of Balastar, my psi freaks out.” An image of the strange monolith came to mind. Blue. It was somehow tied to this.
“Kit, look at me.” Ian stared at her.
“Oh wow,” Dani said, also staring.
“What? What’s wrong?”
“Look in the mirror.” Dani turned her shoulders to face the mirror over the dresser.
Kit stepped closer and leaned in. Her eyes were glowing blue. It was a phenomena that occurred when people bonded with their psi-mate. She and Balastar were already bonded. She turned her head slightly. The streak in her hair was an odd mix of amber and yellow. She looked to Dani. “What’s happening?”
***
Balastar felt another pulse envelope his psi. Somehow, it was Kit. No, he corrected himself, it was related to her. “Where are you, babe?” He didn’t expect an answer. They’d made the portal jump three days ago, and he was pretty sure he was going insane. If he found her— when he found her—he would never let her go again. He was about to go scrounge up some food when Marco buzzed his com.
“Jules got a hit. Both ships arrived on Solorian eight days ago.”
It was about fracking time. “That’s our destination. I’m decoupling the ships. You staying over there?”
“Let’s just say I prefer Jules to Armond.”
“I can’t imagine why.” Balastar jogged to the bridge and started the decoupling sequence for the airlock to Jule’s ship. “We’ll meet you there.” Once they were free, he connected to the ship’s AI, found the coordinates, and set the course. Another day and a half. He only hoped he could keep his sanity. Once they were underway, he pulled up information on the planet. Recent newcomers to space
flight, they were relatively limited on technology. Gravity modulators had yet to make it there so transportation was standard surface and aircraft. Their primary exports were natural resources such as wood and stone. Overall, it wasn’t a noteworthy place, which was probably why the Portal Masters selected it.
An hour later Jules buzzed him. “I’ve been digging, and it appears that someone recently purchased a failed resort in the middle of frickin’ nowhere. My bet is that it’s the PMs. It’s high up in the mountains and totally isolated. It’s going to be cold as hell. If we go down there, we dress warm.”
“Got it. Oh, and last I heard, hell isn’t cold.” Balastar disconnected. Hell was being without your psi-mate. He didn’t care what the temperature was. He was getting Kit back.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The day and a half felt more like a month, but they were finally on approach to the spaceport at Solorian. The weird psi pulses had continued off and on, gaining strength as they drew closer to the planet. Something was happening to him and he'd bet to Kit as well. If Armond could detect the focal points, maybe he could contact her. He took a deep breath and focused on the horizon.
“Where are you, love?”
“Balastar! You found me!”
Relief flooded through him. “I’ll always find you. Are you all right?”
“Something’s happening to me, or at least to my psi.”
“I know. Here, too. We’ve got a lock on the focal points. We can bring you aboard now.”
“Wait, everyone is asleep. We need to talk. Can you pinpoint my location and port only me? I’m in the last room on the third floor. I’ll explain in person.”
Balastar checked in with Armond, who thought he’d be able to locate her once they docked.
“Give us twenty. We’re approaching the station now.” He brought the ship in and coupled to the small but functional spaceport. The familiar clink and hiss told him before the readout that they were set. He unlocked the entry hatch so Marco and Jules could enter, then went and found Armond in the galley. Kit was down there, and he needed her in his arms.
Liberation (Alien Attachments Book 3) Page 18