Hunter

by Sharon Partington

  Only one hurdle remained: the inspection of our transfer documents by Ministry of Justice personnel. The knot of tension returned to my gut as an iron-faced woman looked them over.

  “Your destination?” she demanded.

  “The Arcturon at Lunar City,” Kenny replied.

  The woman’s gaze shifted to me and I lowered my gaze, doing my best to look defeated and contrite.

  “The Arcturon is a military correctional facility which lies outside our jurisdiction,” she said.

  “Yes, ma’am. That would be correct.”

  “Regulations state that such transfers are permitted only under special circumstances. The request must be approved and signed by a judge.” She flipped through the papers. “I don’t see that here.”

  Kenny was getting impatient, I could tell by the way he ground his teeth and the way the muscles in his jaw twitched.

  Easy, Briani, or we’ll be sharing a cell back on level thirty-nine of the Blackgate.

  “I’m expected to deliver this prisoner to the Arcturon. Are you going to clear me for departure or not?”

  “Of course,” said the woman with a frosty smile. “As soon as you show me the court order.”

  Kenny muttered a curse. “The Blackgate has already provided the authorization to transfer code, isn’t that enough?”

  “I’m afraid not. Regulations must be followed explicitly. I must verify the request and the judge’s signature myself.”

  I felt this horrible sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. The bureaucratic bitch would never let us go.

  “Perhaps you failed to notice,” said Kenny, nodding to the sheaf of papers, “But my orders are signed by the United Galactic Federation’s Director of Military Security and Intelligence. If you’re not going to clear us for departure, then perhaps you’d be good enough to call his office and explain why his prisoner isn’t in transit.”

  The woman paled. “There are channels. Procedures. I’m only following regulations.”

  Kenny shrugged. “I’m sure he’ll take that into consideration when he speaks with your superiors.”

  The woman looked like she might be sick.

  Nice save, Briani.

  She gathered the transfer orders together and stamped them with rather more force than was necessary before almost throwing them back at Kenny. He smiled and slipped them back into his courier’s pouch.

  “Thank you, ma’am,” he said, offering her a salute. “It’s been a pleasure.”

  He prodded me in the direction of the docking port. “That fucking forger I paid is a dead man,” he muttered. “Let’s get the hell out of here before the bitch changes her mind.”

  ◆◆◆

  Once safely out of the Tyrian system, Kenny made some inquiries and learned that Gina was on her way back to Jaraslad from the Ilion Sector with a hold full of “medical supplies.” At least that’s what the official cargo manifest read. The Ilion Sector was home to the Lyrian star system, the recreational pharmaceutical capital of the galaxy. I doubted customs knew about the secret compartment hidden behind Bellissima’s forward bulkhead. The one that now probably held enough dream crystals, and its opiate cousin, bliss, to mellow out half the galaxy.

  Before I set foot back on the station, my first order of business was to alter my appearance. Having Kenny spirit me out of the Blackgate was all well and good, but it wouldn’t mean shit if the Dorani’s tossed my can back into prison the moment I stepped off his ship.

  I sent him in search of Bardol Vashin—a slippery little Sorrellian doper who distributed his wares in and around level eight of the circle. He returned an hour later with half a dozen vials of enhancers—DNA altering drugs that would change my physical appearance enough that law enforcement wouldn’t recognize me.

  I didn’t like taking drugs of any kind, not even pain blockers. They clouded my judgment and fucked up my instincts, but there were times when they did have their uses. So far as I knew enhancers weren’t addictive; hell, they weren’t even strictly illegal. I could take them for as long as necessary without doing myself any permanent physical damage. The only drawback was that they only worked so long as I continued to take them. If I stopped, I’d gradually revert back to my old look. Which, at this point, wasn’t an option. I didn’t like being without options.

  I took the drugs.

  While I waited for them to work their magic I set about repairing my battered financial situation.

  David Archer’s assets on Jaraslad had been frozen upon my arrest, but I’d never been one to keep all of my financial eggs in one basket—how stupid would that be? My money was spread out over a dozen different accounts, under a dozen different aliases, in a dozen financial institutions, on a dozen different worlds. Each account was numbered, encrypted, and password protected up the wazoo, and each came with a platinum credit chip that allowed me to access my ill-gotten gains from any data-console in the galaxy. I’d done a pretty good of job of burying my assets; it would take a forensic accountant years to uncover them all.

  Half an hour on a data-terminal had me financially solvent once again. I opened a new station account, attaching it to a financial institution in the Soldian system under the name Neil Owen—my great-great-grandfather—feeling a small twinge of regret as I let David Archer go. I transferred half a million credits into the new Jaraslad account and leased a new, slightly larger, suite a little farther along the circle; my old one had been rented out again as soon as the police seal had come down.

  I made a mental note to pay a visit to my forger friend, Lenny, at some point as well and acquire myself some new ID’s. I’d also have to see about getting myself a new message center, the old one probably gathered dust in some Dorani evidence locker along with my confiscated guns. The inconvenience of having to recreate myself and rebuild my personal arsenal added another prickly layer of irritation to the fury I felt at Gina’s betrayal. Her payback list just kept getting longer.

  Forty-eight hours after taking my first dose of enhancers I was ready to make my reappearance on the station. My black hair was now blond; my blue eyes, green. My skin tone was a couple of shades darker. I couldn’t do anything to alter my height; the enhancers weren’t that powerful, and my basic bone structure remained the same, but I didn’t look much like my old self.

  My next stop was Agrakh’s Weapons Emporium on level six. Rachmar’s cousin had connections that rivaled Kenny’s; he could lay his hands on just about anything, for the right price. I placed an order for a custom built laser rifle, outlining my specific requirements. It would cost three times more than the old one, but the charge would be bigger, the scope multi-phasic, covering everything from ultra-violet to infra-red, and it would be lighter and easier to disassemble. I also replaced my palm laser with a newer, smaller, more lethal model.

  Bless his black little heart, but Agrakh even managed to score me new fire lance. Not an easy feat considering Sirtanis occupied a particularly volatile sector of the galaxy.

  Now that Gina had promoted herself to Queen Shit of her dad’s little empire getting close to her would be tough. But I didn’t want to kill her from a distance. I wanted to watch her face as I pulled the trigger. I wanted to see the light die in her eyes.

  I wanted her to know who. And I wanted her to know why.

  The Orion was busy when I passed through the beaded orange curtain. Kayla smiled as I took a seat at the bar. It was her professional smile—she didn’t recognize me. She wore white leather today, trimmed with cobalt sequins, and she’d dyed her hair a smoky blue.

  “Welcome to the Orion, what can I get you?”

  “Rigian liquor. Straight up, no ice.”

  She frowned. “Only one man I know drinks that.”

  I nodded faintly, enjoying the game. “Is that right?”

  She leaned in to study me more closely, a slow smile moving across her face. “Well, now,” she murmured. “I’m sorry, mister, but I didn’t get your name.”

  “Owen,” I said. “Neil.”
r />   “So, Owen, Neil. What brings you to Jaraslad?”

  I suppressed a smile as she poured my drink. She knew who I was now, but she could play the game with the best of them.

  “I need to have a word with Korsin Diharryn. I heard he owns this place.”

  “He does.”

  “Is he here?”

  “That depends on who’s asking. Does he know you?”

  The question was asked innocently enough, but amusement glinted in her eyes.

  “We have a mutual acquaintance.”

  “And who would that be?”

  I leaned in close. “Come on, Kayla. Is he here or not?”

  She chuckled. “Hang on, I’ll see if he’s busy.”

  She disappeared behind the curtain. A few moments later, she returned and motioned for me to follow. As I stepped past her, she whispered in my ear, “Is it true blonds have more fun?”

  Music drifted in from the club. A bottle of Rigian liquor, as well as a slender glass crystal pipe, decorated the low black table. The Lyrian bar owner wore a sapphire blue silk caftan and reclined amid an ocean of cushions.

  “Hunter!” he purred. “What an unexpected pleasure. I see you have adopted a new look. I must say, it suits you. I assume, then, that the Dorani authorities do not yet know that you are no longer their guest?”

  “Not yet, no.”

  “To what do I owe this honor?”

  I sat cross-legged on the floor as he reached to pour me a drink. The square cut emerald on his finger glittered and flashed in the light of the glow-globes.

  “You owe me a favor; I’ve come to collect.”

  “Ah. And this favor, it will cancel the debt between us?”

  “It will.”

  “Excellent! And what may I do for you?”

  “You’re a master of poisons, aren’t you?”

  He chuckled. “I am, although execution by poison hardly seems your style.”

  “What can I say, I’m always open to acquiring new talents.”

  “And this newly acquired talent would require...?”

  “Something that will incapacitate, but not kill. I want the subject to be fully aware.”

  “But unable to escape?”

  “Exactly.”

  Korsin stroked his chin thoughtfully. “I might know of a suitable substance. It is called hydracor venom. In small doses it induces vertigo and paralysis, only in larger doses does it kill.”

  “Undetectable?”

  “Completely.”

  I reached for my drink. “Good enough. Now that we’ve taken care of the substance, let’s move on to the delivery.”

  ◆◆◆

  Bellissima arrived at the station four days after we did. I knew Gina would want some downtime and her crew would be yammering for shore leave. One of her first stops would be the Orion.

  I arrived early, sitting at a table in the corner with an unobstructed view of the door. My fury ran deep and cold, and I’d nursed it to a razor-sharp edge. I’d only ever killed a handful of women, and none of them had screwed me over the way Gina had. Her betrayal burned like salt in an open wound.

  She arrived just before midnight, trailed by a couple of her crew. Big guys I remembered from previous encounters with Antonio Briani. Apparently she’d promoted them from standard grunt to bodyguard. She ordered a drink at the bar, and Kayla’s eyes met mine for a moment. She winked at me then looked back to Gina, taking the offered credit chip. Gina leaned against the bar, her gaze sweeping the smoke-filled club. Her eyes lingered on me for a moment and my stomach clenched. Her gaze wandered away. She didn’t recognize me. She didn’t notice Kayla’s little addition to her drink either. I sat back, taking advantage of the crowd and flickering strobe, watching her play the room.

  Gina had never been one to spend her free time alone. With her beauty and curves she attracted a lot of male attention, especially when she was on the make, and tonight was no exception. She divided her time between a tall Dorani trooper and a red-bearded Terran mercenary I’d done business with a few times. The booze brought out her affectionate nature and she pulled the Terran merc onto the dance floor, wrapping her arms around his neck as he nuzzled her ear. The trooper fumed at the bar until he’d consumed enough courage to make a play for Gina’s full attention. The merc wasn’t ready to give her up and a scuffle developed on the dance floor. Rachmar and two guys from Station Security escorted all three of them to the door.

  Gina had always had a taste for the exotic and the Dorani held the winning ticket in the end. She blew the Terran merc a flirtatious kiss. I followed her and her date as they wandered back up the circle. She’d given her goons the rest of the night off; she probably thought she was safe in the company of an armed trooper.

  She was about to discover how wrong she was.

  I stayed well back as they walked toward the upper rings. The trooper had his arm around her waist; neither of them were too steady on their feet. They made one stop: a liquor vendor where they bought a bottle of Riscean Tal Brandy.

  Apparently a private party was on the agenda.

  When they reached the entrance to docking bay nine Gina unsealed the doors. The trooper pulled her into an unsteady embrace and Gina laughed as she broke away and led him into the ship.

  She’d left a couple of her crew behind to keep an eye on things; they’d settled down to play dice to the left of the gangway. I considered killing them but decided it would cause more trouble than it was worth. I retreated back towards the station’s Red Light District as I tried to think of some other way to get them away from the ship.

  Patience, Gage. Think.

  A female voice called to me and a dark-skinned Soldian whore waved from the doorway of Mother Rheah’s Pleasure House. Kali and I had spent quality time together on more than one occasion, but she didn’t recognize me with my new look.

  “Hey, Mister,” she purred. “Care to spend some time with a lonely girl?”

  Mother Rheah’s top wage-earner could do things with her body that would make a cast iron temple guardian break out in a cold sweat. She’d dyed her short hair a smoky purple and the gossamer thin, lilac shift she wore left absolutely nothing to the imagination.

  I’d just found the perfect way to distract Gina’s guards.

  “I’d love to, baby, but I can’t. I do know a couple of guys who could use a good time, though. Maybe you and,” I nodded to the petite blonde Terran girl strutting along the circle, “your friend can entertain them?”

  “Mmmm,” she murmured, slipping her arms around my neck. “That might be fun. Wanna watch?”

  I suppressed a smile. “Maybe next time.”

  She pouted her disappointment. “Mother Rheah don’t let Lana and me go cheap. Who’s gonna pay for our time?”

  “My friends, my treat.”

  “My, aren’t you the generous one. How long did you want the party to last?”

  “They’ve been in space a long time, I thought I’d treat them to the whole night. It’s a surprise, though. They can’t know I sent you.”

  “I think we can manage that. Lana and me are good at surprises. Money up front?”

  I smiled. “Absolutely.”

  ◆◆◆

  I waited an hour. I wanted to give my ‘gifts’ time to persuade Gina’s crewmen that much more fun could be had in the company of two beautiful women, and Korsin’s secret ingredient needed plenty of time to work its magic. I watched from a table at an outdoor diner as Kali and Lana sauntered past, arm in arm with Gina’s wayward sentries. The two men still might not survive the night, but at least they’d die happy.

  Once I knew for sure the bay was clear, I made my way back and slipped inside, standing for moment in the shadows watching the ship. Most of the crew enjoyed shore leave, only a few would have remained behind to keep an eye on things.

  Gina and the trooper would be in the captain’s quarters. On the forward deck above the engine room, if I remembered correctly.

  I slipped silently up the metal s
tairs, pausing at the top to draw on my gloves. The door to the command deck stood open. A crewman lounged in the captain’s chair playing a VR game he’d plugged into the navigation console.

  Tony Briani would never have allowed that, not in a million years. He’d have ripped the guy a new asshole, told him he obviously had too much time on his hands, and had him scrubbing the magnetic coils in the number three hyper drive reactor with a metal brush.

  Gina’s crewmen were such fuck-ups.

  I ducked behind the railing as Gina’s date left her quarters and entered the galley across the hall. He had his shirt off.

  Gee, it looked like I was interrupting something.

  The door to Gina’s room stood partially open and soft music drifted into the hallway. Very romantic. I peeked into the galley, the trooper’s back was to me as he worked at uncorking the brandy. A steel carafe sat on the counter next to the door. I brought it down on the back of his head, catching him as he fell.

  Sorry, guy, you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time.

  A half dozen scented candles provided the only light in Gina’s room. They burned on a low table in the corner. The trooper had draped his shirt and jacket over the chair next to the bed; his holstered weapon resting on the seat.

  Korsin’s poison would have had plenty of time to take effect now. Hopefully Gina wouldn’t be in any condition to fight me.

  I drew the trooper’s blaster. Gina lay, naked, on the bed, her breathing rapid and shallow. A faint sheen of sweat covered her body. I pulled the door softly closed.

  “Hey, baby,” I said as I knelt over her, sliding the barrel of the blaster along the side of her face and down her neck. “You don’t look so good. Something you drank, maybe?”

  Her eyes widened in shock that quickly turned to panic, and she went very white.

  “Yeah, I know I don’t quite look myself, but you know how it is. I guess I’ve gone and spoiled your little date, huh? My bad. Surprised to see me?” I smiled faintly. “I just bet you are. I’m supposed to be wasting away in that Dorani prison, aren’t I? Sorry to disappoint you, especially since you went to so much trouble to arrange it.”