by S. L. Hadley
Nita spotted them at the same time.
“Ships incoming. Looks like three—no, four of them. Registered freighters but I’d bet my tits they’re better armed than the Navy.”
If she hadn’t been so anxious, Kitty would have laughed. Instead, she forced herself to take a deep breath and sit back in an attempt to look unconcerned.
“Maintain course,” she ordered. “And keep an open channel. I want the chance to look Satoshi in the eye.”
The call came several minutes later, just before the approaching vessels drew near enough for concern. Kitty eyed the blinking indicator for several seconds before finally activating the vid and it was several more before Satoshi’s face appeared.
The man’s eyes were piercing as ever, though Kitty could have sworn there was a tad more grey in his hair than the last time she’d seen him. Though perhaps she’d simply woken him; it was extremely early on Adrastos, after all.
“Miss Black,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting you.”
Swallowing her nervousness, Kitty cracked a smile.
“That’s good,” she said. “I hate being predictable.”
Satoshi laughed, catching her off guard. His tone was innocent enough but, under the circumstances, it was enough to make her doubt every decision she’d made in the last two weeks.
“Indeed. I suspect Mr. DeWitt would have agreed. Still, is there something I can do for you?”
“You can call off your dogs.”
“My dogs? Oh, you mean the ships? A mere precaution, I assure you.”
“Lots of firepower for a precaution.”
Satoshi grinned, reclining. He turned to someone beside him, just off-screen, and muttered something. They kept his attention for a few seconds. Then, he nodded curtly and returned his attention to Kitty.
“These are dangerous times, Miss Black. It behooves one to be quite… vigilant.” When Kitty made no reply, he shifted in his seat. “As a matter of fact, many of these weapons were shipped half-way across the galaxy. From a little hole-in-space called Juarez Station, I believe. Once you arrive, I’d love to show off some of my collection.”
“Let me guess. The price of admission is one drakashi?”
“More or less.” Satoshi chuckled, making a gesture of helplessness. “What can I say? You may have your unpredictability, but I’m a creature of habit.”
“I don’t intend to give Inu back.”
“Or… perhaps not that unpredictable.” He laughed again. “Why don’t we discuss it in person?”
“And if I decline?”
Satoshi didn’t answer. He didn’t have to.
“I’ll see you soon, Miss Black.”
The second the connection went dead, Kitty leapt to her feet and rushed to Nita’s side. She leaned over the back of her chair, studying the displays and biting her lip to keep from muttering aloud. Every so often, Nita would glance up at her in obvious concern.
“Keep an eye on those freighters,” Kitty said, finally. “If they so much as charge a warning shot, I want you to get us the fuck out of here.”
“You don’t think he’ll let us land?” Nita asked. Her hands were sweaty on the controls.
“I think he plans to kill us the second we’re off the Feronia.”
Nita spun in her chair to fix Kitty with a somber expression. She obviously wanted to maintain it but turned her attention back to the displays as quickly as it had left them. Sighing, she shook her head.
“What are we doing, Kitty? Why are you going along with this?”
“Can’t you trust me?”
“I’d trust you with my life—you know that. But this…?”
Smiling gently, though she knew Nita couldn’t see it, Kitty leaned down and kissed the top of her head.
“Ye of little faith,” she said. “Just watch.”
***
Kitty watched the orange-tinted planet grow larger and more detailed in the viewscreen. Quietly, as though emanating from the floor and bulkheads themselves, she could hear the rumble of the Feronia’s engines. It had grown louder since they’d hit atmosphere, but her attention was held elsewhere.
Less than a kilometer ahead, one of Satoshi’s ships guided them down to the surface. The wake of its engines was enough to jostle the controls in Nita’s hands but, like Kitty, the woman’s gaze was centered on a cluster of maps that tracked the other three ships.
“I don’t like this,” Nita said.
“You already said that. Several times.”
“Well, I’m saying it again. This is a terrible fucking idea.”
“Duly noted. Now, check the traffic again. Anything Navy?”
One-handed, Nita tapped several, efficient commands into her console. Her grim expression tightened.
“Nothing flying,” Nita said. She glanced momentarily up at Kitty. “Is that bad?”
“Not in the slightest. How long until we land?”
“Maybe five minutes.”
Kitty nodded, straightening up and twisting at the waist to work out the knots in her back. She patted the top of Nita’s chair.
“I’ll go check on the boys. You have the conn.”
No sooner had Kitty turned to go, than the door to the bridge opened and Lio stepped through. He was bare-chested, but there was no mistaking the fact that he was prepared for war. The tendrils of his mane had been bound in a tight ponytail that hung clear off the nape of his neck and a pair of gleaming, yet antiquated laspistols were holstered at his waist.
Most telling, however, was the ravenous, almost maniacal grin on his face.
“Look at you!” she exclaimed, clapping her hands together and pressing them to her lips. Skipping forward, she circled the Arsalian and examined him from every angle.
The sight was almost enough to make her wish they could have delayed for another hour or two.
“Everyone’s ready,” Lio said, ignoring Kitty’s inspection. He stared past her, squinting a bit to make out the details on the smaller viewscreens. “Guess it’s almost time?”
“Almost.”
“So, what’s the plan? We gonna come out shooting?”
Kitty shook her head and lowered her voice. “I hope not. With a little luck, we won’t have to fire a single shot. Just make sure the boys follow my lead.”
“They will. It might help if we knew your plan, though.”
Kitty glanced at Nita. The woman couldn’t so much as wiggle her ears, but she didn’t have to be an Arsalian for Kitty to tell she was straining to catch every word.
“I filed some reports, sent documents to a few sources, that sort of thing. It’s complicated and I couldn’t go through official channels, but we should have backup as long as Satoshi lands his ships when we do.”
“Backup? You mean the Navy?”
“Definitely not.”
“Then, who?”
“It’s not important right now. What is important is making sure that the skies are clear. No matter what. Got it?”
Lio nodded. He didn’t look particularly happy about it, but his grimace faded quickly and he leaned in to steal a quick kiss. Kitty granted it freely, reaching around to squeeze his backside and trying not to think about the possibility that she might never get the chance again.
“Stay safe,” she whispered.
“That an order?”
She squeezed him again.
“You bet your ass.”
Kitty watched Lio until he’d left the bridge and the door closed behind him. Then, she slowly returned to her usual seat and sank into it. Her laspistol dug into her hip so she removed it from its holster and turned it thoughtfully over in her hands.
The last time she’d done something like this had been when she’d surrendered to DeWitt. At that time, when she’d held the weapon, it had been to consider her own death. Now, the only death she longed for was Satoshi’s.
All in all, it was a much better state of being.
“One minute,” Nita announced, pulling Kitty from her thoughts. A second later, th
e sound of the Feronia’s engines increased tenfold as they fought to reverse the ship’s momentum in preparation to touch down. Even with the shielding and thickness of the hull, the roar was still almost deafening.
Rather than wait until they’d landed, Kitty tapped a few commands into her console. Almost at once, the connection icon began to blink—first red, then yellow. She breathed deeply.
Satoshi waited on the other side of the link, waiting for her to open the vid-session. She could have done so immediately, but he wouldn’t have been able to hear her over the engines and she had better things to do than stare at that bastard’s face for a minute, unspeaking. Still, if nothing else, at least his curiosity would keep him from deciding to blow them out of the sky mid-landing.
A faint tremor ran through the Feronia as its landing struts touched down. The roar of the engines faded at once, from an oppressive, low-pitched growl, to a whine, and finally to silence.
Kitty wanted to drag things out even further, but that would only arouse Satoshi’s suspicion. She tucked her laspistol between her legs, well out of sight.
“Nita,” she said. “You’re on external sensors. Keep your eyes open. I need to know how many men and ships he’s got targeting us. When I signal you, go tell Lio. Quietly.”
“Aye, Skipper.”
Kitty opened the connection. She kept her expression muted and her mind blank as Satoshi’s face appeared; she didn’t know how strong of a psyker the man was, or if his abilities would work over vids at such a close range, but she wasn’t inclined to take chances.
“Welcome back to Adrastos, Miss Black.”
“You wanted to discuss things in person?” she shrugged. “Here I am.”
“Somehow, this lacks the personal touch I’d imagined,” Satoshi said, smiling faintly. “Would you and Inu care to join me for lunch?”
“Gladly. But, you played host last time. Perhaps I can return the favor aboard the Feronia?”
“A generous offer.” Satoshi chuckled, reclining. “But, Adrastos is my home, Miss Black. I wouldn’t dream of shirking my duty.”
“I insist.”
“Afraid that’s my line. Though, if you’d be more comfortable, you can leave the drakashi aboard.”
Kitty had to keep herself from frowning. Leave it to Satoshi to catch her off guard. Though, in reality, it didn’t make a bit of difference; if he wanted to kill them all, it wouldn’t matter who stepped down the ramp first.
“Can I speak frankly?” she said, steepling her fingers.
“Of course.”
“I’ve some bad experiences with one-on-one meetings recently. My last one ended in naval custody.”
“So I heard. Quite unfortunate.”
“And you sent so many ships to escort us here. I’m worried it may have attracted the wrong sort of attention.”
Satoshi didn’t even try to mask his smile. Kitty did.
The man’s courteous intimidation was all the confirmation she needed. He thought she was politely refusing out of fear, trying to save her own skin. Well, it was certainly true, but far from the whole story. He’d seen through her obvious sleight of hand, but missed the real deception. Which meant all she had to do was endure.
“You don’t need to worry about the Navy here, Miss Black. Their nearest ships are on the far side of Adrastos.”
“I’m sure DeWitt thought the same thing. Unfortunately, Special Response uses this new thing called legs.”
“As I said, you don’t need to worry,” Satoshi repeated. “Admiral Leahy and I have an understanding. Our insignificant operation is beneath his notice.”
Kitty made a show of chewing her lip. An admiral taking bribes from the Syndicate? If she made it out of here, that was a piece of intelligence that could prove quite valuable. For the moment, however, the greater concern was how to force the issue. If she pushed, would Satoshi assume she was merely cautious? Or would he begin to suspect her true ploy?
It was worth the risk.
“Humor me,” Kitty said. She frowned slightly as Satoshi’s smile widened.
“I wouldn’t dream of harming you, Miss Black. After all, I hear you’ve got a new crewmember on the way.”
Kitty recoiled, gripping the arms of her chair in authentic shock. He knew? How? How could Satoshi possibly have discovered she was pregnant? It was far too early for her to be showing. Had he read it in her mind? Did that mean he knew about the trap she’d laid?
Her thoughts had become a whirlwind and it took all her focus to keep from showing it. If Satoshi knew everything, they were already dead. The only option was to press forward.
“Who told you?” she demanded.
Satoshi smiled pleasantly, folding his hands in his lap.
“A source,” he said. “Again, you have nothing to fear from the Navy. Not here, at least.”
Kitty’s glared openly at him. That Satoshi knew about her child and planned to kill her anyway ignited an unfamiliar, maternal rage. Fortunately, it also provided just the cover she needed to justify her obstinacy.
“Humor me,” she growled.
Satoshi’s smile evaporated. He leaned forward, eyes flashing with anger. When he spoke, he practically spat out the words.
“You think you have any say in this? I could kill you all! I have every right!”
For a long time, Kitty said nothing. She just stared at him, playing out possible scenarios in her mind. It was true; Satoshi could have killed her a hundred times by now. But he hadn’t.
“Humor me,” she said, at last. “Send your ships away and we’ll talk.”
Satoshi glared back at her, silent for at least as long as she’d been. Finally, with a disgusted sound, he gestured to someone Kitty couldn’t see.
“For your sake,” he said. “And the sake of your child, this had better not be some trick. Waste my time and you won’t live long enough to regret it.”
Nita stood, eyes wide and her face pale. She looked at Kitty, waving for attention and glancing only once more at her screens. She pointed once upward, then held up a single finger on her opposite hand. Then, pointing down at the floor, she flashed all ten fingers. Twice. Three times.
Kitty breathed a sigh and nodded, keeping her eyes glued on Satoshi’s face. One ship and thirty men. More than they could fight alone, but few enough that they just might survive.
“Thank you,” she said. Trying to adopt a weary expression, she sagged against her chair and lifted one hand to her cheek as subtly as she could. With a single finger elevated, she toyed with her hair a moment then curled it into a closed fist.
Nita nodded with understanding.
Kitty jerked her head almost imperceptibly toward the door before resting her cheek against her hand. It felt almost painfully obvious to her, but knew that Satoshi had only the slimmest of chances to even detect the gesture, much less grasp its meaning in time.
Silently, Nita sprinted a wide path—well out of view—and disappeared through the door to the bridge.
“I have a question,” Kitty said, desperate for anything to keep Satoshi occupied a moment longer.
“It can wait.”
“No, it can’t.” Before Satoshi had a chance to argue, she pressed on. “Why is Inu still so important to you? With all the bounties and bribes and spying, wouldn’t it just be cheaper to buy another drakashi to replace him?”
The man laughed darkly, shaking his head.
“Are you an idiot? You actually have to ask?”
“Humor me.”
“Those words lost their charm ages ago. Understood? As for Inu, it was never about the money. I thought you of all people would understand. It’s principle. Inu is mine, you stole him, and now… I’m taking him back.”
From the corner of her eye, Kitty spotted a small movement in one of the viewscreens tied to the Feronia’s external sensors. It was too high on the hull for any of Satoshi’s men on the ground to spot and too subtle for the crew of the sole remaining airborne ship to notice in time, barring a miracle.
<
br /> In other words, perfect.
And, fittingly, it was a drakashi’s claws that held the shoulder-mounted plasma lance.
“You’re wrong about one thing,” Kitty said, beaming. For once, it was nice not to have to mask her true emotions. Win or lose, it was too late to bother with deception.
Inu fired, the exhaust instantly fogging the sensor’s vid-feed. A split second later, the ordinance’s explosive impact vibrated through the Feronia’s hull. From the way Satoshi flinched on screen, it was obvious he felt it too. He was close.
Kitty stood, pulling the laspistol out from between her thighs. She had just enough time to savor the look of disbelief on Satoshi’s face.
“Inu was never yours.”
Tapping a single button, Kitty ended the call and abandoned the bridge at a run.
***
The shooting had already started when Kitty reached the loading bay. The ramp was down, but her crew was still aboard, barricaded behind a mountain of crates and hastily assembled scrap metal. Several rounds of railgun ammunition tore through the air, mere inches above her head, as she drew close. Breaking out in a cold sweat, Kitty ducked her head lower than necessary as she scampered into position between Ammon and Myorie. Both acknowledged her with grim smiles and a nod. There was no sign of Lio, Inu, or Nita.
“Where are the others?” Kitty shouted, struggling to make herself heard.
Standing, heedless of the danger, Ammon unleashed several rounds from his lasgun before ducking back down beside her.
“Above!” he answered, nodding toward a relatively shielded corner. Just outside the line of fire, one of the upper maintenance hatches lay open. “Girlie, too. Should be back soon.”
A hiss sounded behind Kitty and she spun, just in time to be splashed in the face with a burst of bluish-black blood. Letting out a cry like nothing she’d ever heard from the Naga, Vhosa ducked back into cover, clutching his shoulder. Blood leaked through his clawed fingers.
“Damn it!” Ammon snarled, glancing past Kitty. He peered over the top of the barricade, craning his neck to expose as little as possible. “We’re outnumbered.”