Fortune's Risk: A Star Thief Novella (Star Thief Chronicles #1.5)

by Jamie Grey

  One of the guards got to his feet, setting his tablet on the desk. “Contact is here, boss. We need to get to the drop.”

  Kitty frowned. “I suppose my fun will have to wait for now. We’ll deal with him, and his friends, when the tournament’s over. I don’t want anything getting in the way.”

  Bran grabbed Finn’s arms and yanked him to his feet. When he smiled, there was a gaping hole where his left front tooth should have been. “I’m going to enjoy breaking you later, my friend,” he said as he dragged Finn toward another door at the back of the room. “Have a pleasant stay.”

  He threw Finn into a small closet and slammed the door behind him, leaving Finn to stare hopelessly at the suddenly seamless wall in front of him.

  She’d installed a Resule cell. No door once it was shut, no windows, and made from material that blocked all comms in and out.

  He was completely fucked.

  CHAPTER 7

  Keva stared down at the holo image on Viktis’s watch tablet. He’d hacked into the security cameras on the Cordoza floor so they’d have a better sense of what they were up against. It was a good thing he had. Unlike earlier, two men now stood guard outside the door to the suite.

  “What’s going on?” she asked with a frown.

  “Hell if I know. Something must have spooked Kitty. Good thing we came prepared.” Viktis patted the blaster at his hip but Keva shook her head.

  “You promised we’d do it my way.”

  “Fine,” he said. “But when they shoot a hole through your heart, I’m not patching it up.”

  “Just keep up, Pirate, and you’ll see how it’s done.”

  Viktis tapped something into the tablet and the video feed went black. A moment later the security cameras shorted out, sparks hissing against the sleek white walls and streaking them with soot.

  The two guards glanced up from their posts, but before they could move, Keva fired two shots from the small pistol she carried.

  A moment later, they collapsed to the floor, sound asleep.

  She grinned at Viktis and refrained from gloating. “Let’s go.”

  They each pulled on a pair of black gloves as they walked toward the suite, and Keva had already pulled her hair into a tight bun. Leaving any evidence behind would screw their whole plan — getting caught wasn’t part of it.

  Was she seriously going through with this? Breaking into someone’s hotel room? Twenty-four hours earlier, she would have said never. But here she was. Where had the real Keva gone?

  Viktis tapped again at his watch, using the device Keva had planted earlier to open the door to the suite. Together, they slipped inside the darkened foyer.

  Like before, the pungent stargazer lilies made her gag.

  Keva forced herself to ignore them and switched on the light in her own watch, letting the cool glow highlight the three doors that led off the space. “Straight ahead is the sitting room. Bedroom’s on the left, bathroom on the right.”

  “Kitty’s computer is in her bedroom.” He carefully opened the door, Keva following close behind. She let her light sweep through the room, highlighting the giant bed, the plush carpet, the luxurious curtains. It was definitely a bedroom fit for a mob queen.

  “So what’s the plan?” she asked, leaning against the door.

  Viktis booted up Kitty’s computer, the light turning his amber skin green. “I’m going to plant the evidence of her cheating in her files. Once the station security show up to search, they’ll find it immediately.”

  “But you said there was also a physical component?”

  “Yes. Catch.” Viktis tugged a small box from his pocket and tossed it to Keva.

  It was a state of the art bio-lock, not much bigger than a ring box but heavy enough that her muscles started to ache as she held it. The things were supposed to be able to survive atomic explosions with no damage. There was a small indent where the owner could press their finger to unlock the thing, and an energy dampener that could lock it down to any surface, making it virtually immovable.

  “What are we doing with this?”

  “Making sure Kitty Cordoza is locked away for life.”

  Viktis’s cold grin made Keva shift uncomfortably. It hit her for the first time that this whole plan was personal. He didn’t want to take this woman down for altruistic purposes. There was something else going on.

  “What’s inside?” She set the box down on the dresser and stared at the dull gray surface.

  “A data chip. Contains a list of every slave that the Cordozas have bought, transported, or sold.”

  Keva felt her eyes widen. “How the hell did you get that?”

  “A lot of late nights.” He snapped his jaw shut around the words as though they were painful. “Just find somewhere to hide it that won’t be too difficult for the guards to find when they search her suite. I’ve set the bio-lock to her DNA, so it will lead right back to her.”

  A gasp escaped Keva’s lips. Bio-locks were supposed to be unhackable. That’s why they were so expensive.

  “Hurry up!”

  She blinked, then started pulling open drawers. Kitty’s underwear was as flamboyant as she was, if the lacy bras and crotch-less underwear was anything to go by. Gingerly, she pushed through a drawer of stockings and hid the box in the back. She’d been around long enough to know most male security guards went for the underwear drawers first when searching through personal belongings.

  “Are you done yet?” she asked, glancing down at her watch. “The tournament starts in thirty minutes. We need to get down there and fill Captain Finn in on our progress before we implement Phase Three.”

  “Finished. Let’s get the hell out of here.” He turned off the computer and was headed to the door when Keva’s hand shot out and grabbed his arm. They both froze.

  Voices.

  “Shit.” Viktis scanned the room frantically. “Into the air duct. Now!” He pointed to the grate in the corner. It looked barely big enough for a child.

  Keva’s heart sank.

  “Hurry up,” he said, pushing her toward the cramped space.

  She shook her head and tried to back away. “No way. I’m not going in there. How about I tell them that Kitty wanted me to wait here. They’ll recognize me from earlier.”

  “And the tranquilized guards?”

  “Right. Probably not a good sign.” She sighed and crouched in front of the hole.

  Viktis stood behind her. “Afraid of the dark?”

  She flashed him a look of disgust. “That’s right. Turn it into a joke.”

  The voices grew louder and Keva’s heart thudded painfully. They were just outside the suite. Which was the lesser evil? A battle with them or a battle with herself?

  “Keva, move!”

  She took a deep breath and forced herself to crawl into the gaping hole. Viktis crept in behind her, pulling the vent closed.

  The only sound in the cramped space was their breathing. Keva’s arm pressed against the sleeve of Viktis’s shirt, his warmth seeping into her skin. She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the feel of air moving in through her nose and out through her mouth. A panic attack right now would not help them.

  But gods she hated small spaces like this.

  “Hey, you all right?” Viktis asked, lips millimeters from her ear, his warm breath caressing her skin.

  “Not really.” Her whole body felt like it was a rock, tense and solid. She couldn’t move if she wanted to.

  Kitty’s guards opened the door to the suite, arguing about what to do with the sleeping men as they entered. She picked out three separate voices. Okay odds if she and Viktis had to fight their way out. That option was starting to look better and better as the vent seemed to close in around her.

  One of them headed straight to the bedroom, snapping on the light. She took a deep, shuddering breath as he marched further into the room.

  Viktis took her hand, rubbing it gently between his. She let her eyes drift closed, trying to break free of the trap her min
d was trying to weave. His hand drifted up her arm, stroking softly. She focused on the feel of his warm fingers, the clean scent of his skin in the small space.

  “There’s no sign of anyone here,” one of the voices called from the foyer.

  “Nothing in here either,” the man replied. “But damn, our Kitty has some good taste in clothes.”

  “Hey asshole, if she catches you looking at her underwear, she’ll cut out your eyes.”

  She’d totally called that one.

  There was the sound of the drawer sliding shut, and footsteps leaving the room.

  “See. It’s going to be just fine.” Viktis moved his hand up to her neck, letting his fingers rub slowly at the base of her shoulders. “Besides, I’ll protect you.”

  She opened her eyes at that, turning to frown at him, but he grinned. “Gotcha. You know I expect you to kick their asses if we need to fight,” he whispered. “You are the army lieutenant here after all.”

  “That’s right. And don’t you forget it.” Her heart still felt like it was trying to escape, but at least Viktis’s bad jokes made it a bit easier to breathe. Their gazes met in the strange half-light of the vent and a shiver shot through Keva’s midsection.

  Viktis’s fingers brushed a strand of her escaping hair from her face, his fingers grazing the skin of her jaw and making her skin erupt into goose bumps. They were so close she could see the flecks of green in his golden eyes, the way his skin shimmered in the light.

  “Why do small spaces frighten you?” he asked gently, letting his fingers trail down her neck.

  Keva stared sightlessly at the vent wall as a wave of terror washed over her. She thought she’d gotten over it years ago, but it came up periodically, sending her into a spiral of fear. “Coup attempt when I was nine. I was locked in a secret compartment in our manor for three days. No food, no water, pitch black. Only the sound of screams and whimpers to keep me company.”

  Viktis’s fingers curled into her shoulders. “That must have been horrible.”

  “Wasn’t exactly a vacation.”

  “I watched assassins kill my parents when I was a kid,” he said softly, his tone nonchalant, but ending with a slight tremble. “I pretended to be a servant. Hooked up with the mercs afterwards so I could escape. They never knew the truth about my past.” He paused, his voice dropping slightly. “I found out later that one of my sisters made it out, too.”

  He didn’t make it sound like a good thing, and Keva turned to look at him, interested despite herself. “What happened to her?”

  Viktis’s hands were clenched tightly together in his lap, but his voice was perfectly calm. “Caught by slavers just outside our system. Cordoza’s men. Kitty got one look at Jillis and sold her to a rich Trezian who said he wanted an Ileth housekeeper. Her relation to a former President was an added bonus.” He took a breath. “Took me five years to discover she was alive, and when I found out, I went to the Cordozas to buy her back. By then it was too late.”

  Horror burned the back of her throat and she slid her hand into Viktis’s. “Did her owner kill her?”

  “No, he only raped her. The Cordozas killed her when she managed to escape. They tracked her down like a dog. He didn’t want her back. Too much trouble, and she’d already proved a flight risk. There was only one option. Kitty saw to it personally, since my sister had ruined a lucrative business deal.”

  Keva sucked in a breath. “I’m so sorry.”

  Trapped in his memories, Viktis didn’t respond.

  Keva lifted a hand to his face, as if she could physically drag him away from the horror replaying in his mind. She gently forced him to look at her. “I promise you, Kitty Cordoza is a dead woman.”

  “I don’t want her dead. I want her locked away for the rest of her life so she can live with what she’s done. That’s the worst thing you can do to a woman like her. Take away her power and influence.”

  His eyes glittered angrily in the half-light of the vent and she nodded. “Then that’s what we’ll do. We’ll avenge your sister.”

  They stared at each other, both breathing heavily. Before she could blink, Viktis lowered his head and captured her lips with his. They were warm and demanding against her skin, his gentle caress sending tremors through her body. He tasted like champagne and mint.

  Gods, it had been so long since she’d been kissed like that. Heat started to pool in her belly and she pulled him closer, their tongues warring. A moan escaped her lips as his hand lowered to her breast, and Viktis shifted so he could pull her half across his lap. Keva didn’t resist.

  His hands traveled down her body, resting on her hips. She lowered her lips to his jaw, gently brushing kisses along it until she reached the sensitive spot on his neck just below his ear. Viktis let out a shaky breath as she stroked and kissed him, his fingers curling into her skin.

  “We need to go,” he whispered. But he made no move to pull away.

  Keva smiled against the smooth skin of his neck. “I know.”

  He moaned and pulled her lips back to his. They fit together perfectly, even in the cramped space, and she shivered as his hands slipped beneath her shirt to tease her sensitive nipples through her bra.

  She arched her back, her insides feeling as though they’d burst into flame if she continued to deny her desire. She slowly lowered a hand to the stiffness pressing against her leg.

  Viktis jerked at her touch, letting out a hiss of pleasure. At the sound, wetness pooled between her thighs. Gods, the only thing she wanted right now was him. She didn’t even care about the darkness.

  “Viktis, please,” she panted, tugging him toward the vent opening. Kitty’s bed was sounding pretty good right now.

  But before they could move, voices came from the next room.

  “Yes, ma’am. We’re here, ma’am.” A pause. “No, no sign of them yet. Of course. We’ll be right there.” There were footsteps in the foyer as the three guards scrambled to leave the suite.

  Keva’s breath came in gasps, like she’d just run a race, and beside her, Viktis looked pained. “What was that about?” she whispered.

  “No idea. But we’d better take this opportunity to get out of here.”

  Almost reluctantly, she climbed out of the vent, back into Kitty’s darkened room. Her gaze fell to the large bed and a pang of regret shot through her. If they’d just had a little more time…

  She would have done something completely stupid.

  Keva took a deep breath and stepped away from Viktis. “You’re right. Let’s go.” She spun on her heel and stalked out, heat burning her cheeks. She knew exactly who, and what, this man was, and yet she’d thrown herself at him like some sex-starved whore. What the hell was wrong with her?

  “Keva, wait.”

  She ignored Viktis and yanked open the suite door to peek up and down the hall. Still empty. Without waiting for him, she headed toward the elevators.

  Footfalls sounded behind her as Viktis sprinted to catch up. He winced as he walked, like he was in pain. “Keva. Listen.” He grabbed her arm but she jerked it away.

  “No, you listen. That shouldn’t have happened. The stress of the moment got to me. It won’t happen again. Now, let’s get moving before the captain becomes violently ill from Kitty’s advances.” A shudder shimmied down Keva’s body.

  Viktis frowned, but nodded reluctantly. “Fine, but don’t think this is over.”

  CHAPTER 8

  Viktis took his seat at the poker table and glanced around the packed casino. Where the hell was Finn? Behind him, he knew Keva was doing the same thing. The tournament was about to start, and there was still no sign of him.

  “What do we do?” Keva whispered.

  Her breath warmed his ear, the sweet, floral scent of her perfume washing over him, and he closed his eyes against the surge of lust that spiked through his midsection. He still ached from their earlier kiss like a teenaged boy. She shouldn’t have been able to do that to him with barely a touch, but the thought of how she’d tasted
, how she’d felt in his arms was making him crazy.

  He sucked in a ragged breath. Pull it together. He couldn’t afford to slip up now, not when he was so close to ending Kitty.

  “We go ahead with the plan and hope he shows up soon,” he answered.

  Her worried gazed scanned the room again. “I don’t like this. The captain is never late. What if something’s happened to him?”

  “Then there’s nothing we can do about it now. He’ll be okay for a little longer.” But unease made his skin prickle. She was right. Finn would be here if he could. So what had happened? Renna would kill him if Finn was hurt on his watch, and he knew first hand exactly how dangerous it was to get on her bad side.

  “Here, hold on to this for me,” Viktis said, passing over a small biolock. “Just in case.”

  “What is it?” Keva asked, her forehead furrowing adorably.

  He cleared his throat. Since when was adorable part of his vocabulary? “It’s an insurance policy in case our friendly mob queen tries anything. A copy of the data I planted in her suite.”

  “Smart.” Her gaze met his with admiration and they stared at each other for a long moment, the sounds of the casino starting to recede.

  Until the murmur of the crowd grew louder, breaking the sudden tension between them. Kitty Cordoza and two of her bodyguards had entered the casino and were making for the poker tables. Viktis tried to pick his jaw up off the floor as she sashayed toward him in a dress that left absolutely nothing to the imagination. The cherry-red, floor length silk had a slash that revealed her long legs as she walked, and a plunging neckline that went almost to her stomach. Her dark hair cascaded over her shoulders in shiny waves, and her red lips were parted in a smile as she met Viktis’s gaze.

  “Mr. Zero. So glad you decided to enter the tournament. I have a feeling this is going to be an exceptional game.” She held out her hand to him and he took it, pressing a kiss to her palm.