Too Close to the Sun (The Sun 1)

by Popp, Robin T.

  She stared at him for a moment and he could almost hear thoughts and more lies tumbling around in her head as she tried to figure out what story to tell him next. Beside him, Jack remained quiet.

  "Okay," she finally admitted. "You’re right. I'm not a Priestess. I'm not even an Empath. I thought I'd be safer dressed this way." She gave him a defiant look. “But I wasn’t lying about being Skyler O’Mallen’s daughter.”

  She pulled off the headdress and long auburn hair, the same color as Skyler’s, cascaded down in thick, soft-looking waves. Something in Adrian's gut tightened, but he ignored it.

  "Let's start over. My name, you know. This is my partner, Jack Jones. And you are...?"

  "Phoenix Eemin. My father thought it would be better if I took my mother’s maiden name.” She paused, but when he didn't say anything, she continued. “My father’s work doesn’t let me see him in person very often, but we stay in touch. Every other week for the last ten years, we’ve met at the same virtual cloud café. Sometimes, we talk for hours. Other times, he’s only there long enough to let me know he’s okay.” She paused again. “I didn’t show up last week.”

  “One missed session isn’t cause for alarm,” Adrian pointed out.

  “It was my birthday. He’s never missed my birthday.”

  “He’s probably deep undercover and couldn’t get away. He’ll show up at the next session.”

  Despite his reassuring words, Adrian glanced at Jack, knowing his friend shared his concern. At Adrian's slight nod, Jack pushed away from the table and stood.

  "If you'll excuse me, I have business to attend to.” He offered Phoenix a pleasant smile. "It was nice meeting you.” He didn't wait for her reply, but turned and walked out of the bar.

  Adrian steeled his expression and turned his attention back to the woman. "I’ll ask around and see what I can find out. In the meantime, you should go home."

  "I’m staying," Phoenix said with a stubbornness Adrian had seen many times in her father. “Despite what you think, I know he’s in trouble. I can feel it.”

  “I thought you said you weren’t an empath.”

  She shot him a withering look but he cut her off before she could say anything more.

  "It isn't safe for you to be in this part of the galaxy.” Impatience gave his words a sharp edge but he didn’t care. There was no way he could let her stay in the Outer Rim. He owed Skyler that much.

  "I can take care of myself."

  The force of her green gaze caught him off guard. It had been a long time since he'd noticed the color of a woman’s eyes and the fact that he’d noticed hers did little to improve his temper.

  “Fine.” Pushing away from the table, he stood. "Let's go."

  "You'll help me?"

  He inwardly winced at her hopeful tone. "I’ll help you.” Just not in the way you're expecting.

  She stood and Adrian immediately noticed the stares from the male patrons. "Better put that headdress back on; you're attracting too much attention.”

  He was glad she didn't question him, but immediately complied. Once the piece was again covering her long hair, Adrian felt better, though he missed the sight of it himself.

  "Come on." He took her by the elbow, giving her no option but to walk with him.

  He escorted her out of the bar and through the corridors that would take them to the landing bay. They walked in silence while Adrian kept a constant vigil for the petty thieves and other criminals that haunted the passages of the space station. More than once, Adrian caught Phoenix sneaking looks at him. Her silence only lasted until they reached the landing bay when Adrian stopped at the booking office.

  "What are you doing?" She asked a minute later when he forcefully guided her to the waiting area after purchasing a boarding pass.

  "I'm sending you home."

  "I thought you were going to help me."

  Adrian ignored the hurt in her tone. "I am helping you - by making sure you stay alive. Go home, Ms. Eemin. The Outer Rim is no place for a woman like you."

  "You don't know what kind of woman I am.” She thrust out her chin in a defiant gesture. "I can take care of myself. If you won't help me, then I'll find someone who will.” She scanned the area and, spotting a couple of workers not far off, walked over to them. Unseen, Adrian followed behind her.

  "Excuse me," she said to them. "I was wondering if you might help me."

  The workers glanced at her, interest clearly in their eyes. Adrian moved closer, his hand on his laser, the threat of something dark and painful in his eyes. Without waiting to hear what she had to say, the men quickly gathered their things and hurried off.

  Not easily daunted, Phoenix scowled at him and tried again with another group of dockworkers. Again, Adrian discouraged them with a look.

  Finally, after several more failed attempts, she gave up. "Fine. You win."

  "Clearly."

  When the ship was ready to leave, he saw her settled on board. An unfamiliar emotion flitted through him at the thought that he'd never see her again, but he quickly suppressed it. There were more pressing matters to tend to.

  "If I run into your father, I'll send word to you."

  She turned a withering gaze on him but said nothing.

  He left her sitting there, scowling after him and waited on the docking bay until the ship's doors closed in preparation for take-off. Only then did he head back to the bar where Jack waited for him.

  "What'd you find out?"

  "I couldn't reach Skyler’s ship," Jack said. "And we haven’t received any messages from him. I asked around and no one knows anything. It's like he vanished."

  “That’s impossible. We just saw him two weeks ago, on Oethiron. Something must have happened while he was transporting that bastaghoeff Juarez back to Earth.” Adrian rubbed his head, a futile effort to wipe away the beginnings of a raging headache. The situation was getting worse by the nano-second.

  Skyler was a security forces agent who worked so deeply undercover that not even his own government would help him if he was in trouble. Already skirting the fine line of the law, there was always the risk that an agent might be caught or change allegiance.

  The government's safeguard against a captured or rogue agent revealing government secrets was the tiny time-release capsule surgically implanted in the agent's heart. It contained neo-cyanide, the fastest-acting, deadliest poison in the known galaxy. At designated times, an agent was required to check in and take a brain-scan test proving he or she was of sound mind and body and still loyal to the government. If they passed the test, then the capsule's timer was reset. If they failed, the capsule was allowed to release its poison, eliminating the agent, and thus the threat, once and for all.

  Skyler had once said he lived his life one month at a time. He’d been headed back to Earth when Adrian and Jack had last seen him to turn in a prisoner – and maybe to get his timer reset? If he’d reached Earth and had his timer reset before disappearing, then Adrian and Jack had three weeks to find him before it was too late. If trouble had befallen Skyler before he’d made it back to Earth, then they were working against a much tighter deadline.

  “How long to ready the ship?” Adrian asked, staring into a glass of black Smuggler’s Swill, plagued by his troubled thoughts.

  “An hour. Two at max,” Jack replied. “Do I need to ask where we’re going?”

  Adrian tossed back the contents of his glass and braced for the burn. Then he set the glass back on the table and met Jack’s gaze. “Purgatory.”

  * * * * *

  Thirteen hours after she left Hell’s Gate, Phoenix sat staring blindly out the ship's front view screen, her thoughts replaying the meeting she'd had with Adrian Sun and his friend, Jack. She'd seen the look on their faces. They knew more about her father and his whereabouts than they'd shared with her and that confirmed what she already suspected. Her father was in trouble.

  Xenobian parents and children shared a special familial link; a psychic tether that bound them together
across time and space. It had been assumed that the link Phoenix shared with her mother was sustained by her mother's empathic abilities, since Phoenix had never evidenced any of her own. Everyone generally assumed that she was a null. It wasn’t entirely true, but Phoenix had never told anyone that she also shared a link with her non-Xenobian father.

  Not nearly as strong as the one she shared with her mother, it was there, nonetheless, like a fishing bobber on still waters, floating lightly, barely noticeable. Lately, though, that bobber had started to dip beneath the surface - a clear sign that the link, and by default, her father's life, was in jeopardy. It was that observation that had motivated her to leave home and set out to find him.

  She wasn't about to turn back now.

  When she had seen the surly bounty hunter leave the docking bay, she'd gathered her resolve about her like diamonite armor and demanded that the ship's doors be opened so she could disembark. She felt no guilt asking the ticket master to refund her ticket or in accepting the money he handed her.

  Without the bounty hunter there to scare off everyone she talked to, Phoenix soon found a new source of help in the person of little Mr. Zimmers. Recognizing her outfit and thinking her a genuine Xenobian Priestess, he had hurriedly offered his services when he'd heard her predicament. He too knew a man who could help her, and in exchange for a modest fee, had offered to fly her to him.

  Sensing no malice in his intent, Phoenix had accepted his offer, handing over Adrian's money without hesitation. She only hoped that Mr. Zimmer’s contact would be more helpful than Adrian had been.

  Once settled on board Mr. Zimmer’s ship, fatigue from the excess stimuli and stress of Hell's Gate caught up to her and she had slept, albeit fitfully, for most of the trip.

  Now they were on final approach to Purgatory and Phoenix could barely contain her excitement. She remembered reading about it back home, in the General Galactic Studies.

  Purgatory was an old krystalite mining planet. Decades ago, it boasted the largest single source of the energy-producing crystal, but mining efforts had been ruthless, without thought to conservation. Now, after years of stripping the planet clean of its natural resource, it was virtually uninhabitable. The only city on Purgatory was actually built several thousand kilometers above the surface of the planet, in the clouds. Phoenix had read about the technology that kept "Heaven" floating in place and the air breathable, but didn't understand it. To her, the city was just another part of her grand adventure.

  Docking took little time and once the ship came to a full halt and the stasis field was activated to hold the ship in place, Mr. Zimmers shut down the engines. Phoenix looked out the front view port, feeling a little uneasy at the sight of the flat, open platform that served as a landing base. There were no safety walls in place and she wondered what kept people from falling off. The surface of the planet was a long way down.

  "Are you ready, Priestess?” The portly Mr. Zimmers gave her a comforting smile.

  "Yes, thank you.” Phoenix tried to adopt the worldly tone used by the real priestesses on her home planet. "I appreciate all you've done for me."

  Mr. Zimmers bowed before her. "It is my pleasure."

  Phoenix followed him off the bridge and along the passageway to the hatch. Stepping from the ship, she noticed that three men stood waiting for them. One was older and, as he moved forward, she wondered if he might be a soldier because of his stiff, precise posture. The other two, both younger, also looked like soldiers and Phoenix couldn’t help but wonder if maybe Heaven was now some type of military base.

  "Greetings, Priestess," the older man said. "My name is Marcus. Mr. Dante, the administrator of our cloud city, extends his welcome and asks for the pleasure of your company. If you will follow me?"

  She started to follow, but then noticed that Mr. Zimmers was no longer beside her. Looking around, she spotted him sandwiched between the other two men. She was not so naive as to think they were just ill-mannered, but neither was she experienced enough to know precisely what was happening. For a moment, she considered going to his assistance.

  A touch at her elbow, gentle but firm, had her looking up into Marcus' serious expression. "Mr. Zimmers has other business. If you’ll come with me?"

  There didn't seem to be much of a choice. Phoenix allowed Marcus to escort her across the landing platform, leading her through floating wisps of clouds that dispersed as they passed through them. There was only the slightest breeze and the surrounding silence gave the place a calm, peaceful feeling. Looking over the side of the platform, Phoenix saw the fuzzy shapes of mountains and mining camps far below. A shiver traveled up her spine and she moved a little more toward the center of the platform.

  "Has anyone ever fallen over the edge?" she nervously asked Marcus.

  He gave her a steady look. "No one has ever... fallen...over the edge."

  Phoenix shot him a look, but kept her mouth shut. Sometimes it was better not to know the details.

  She couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief once they were safely through the doors and walking inside the city's main building. People filled the corridors, going about their business and only occasionally glancing at her.

  Marcus led her through a complex pattern of corridors that traveled further into the floating city until he finally stopped before a set of large double-doors. Two very intimidating guards stood on either side, but Marcus paid them no heed as he raised his hand and knocked. From inside, a voice beckoned them to enter.

  Marcus ushered her through the door and into a plush room, with crimson carpet and black furniture. Obviously designed for comfort, the room included a sunken pit in the center with cushioned, perimeter seating and low-level lighting. A retractable viewing screen hung from the ceiling near the left wall and a long conference table with chairs stood to the right side of the room.

  "Is this the Priestess?"

  "Yes, Mr. Dante, this is the Xenobian priestess," Marcus answered, gently urging her forward.

  Phoenix looked for the owner of the gravelly voice. The first fine thread of apprehension wove through her consciousness at the sight of him.

  Dressed in a black trader's outfit with dark hair streaked with gray, he may have been in his fifties or sixties. His once handsome face was battle worn with a particularly bad scar running down the right side of his forehead, across a patched right eye and across his cheek.

  Expensive rings flashed on his fingers, but it was the panther at his feet that really caught her attention. The large cat seemed content to sit and have its head stroked while the man spoke soothing words to it under his breath.

  "How...how do you do?” Phoenix instinctively lowered her voice, not wanting to startle either the man or the animal. The thought that she should have taken Adrian's advice flickered through her mind.

  "I do fine.” Dante's words sounded calculated, as if polite conversation did not come naturally to him. "It is very nice to meet you, Priestess--?"

  "Eemin," she supplied, darting a quick glance around the room. "Phoenix Eemin.”

  "You are looking for your father, are you not?"

  His tone made her uneasy. "Yes. I was told you might be able to help me?"

  "Perhaps. I have many resources, but I'm afraid nothing is free."

  "I understand." She tried to sound as if she conducted business of this nature all the time. "What is your fee?"

  "To search the entire Outer Rim? Without offending the other underworld leaders who reside here? A million units of exchange, minimum."

  Phoenix gasped. A million units? She didn't have that kind of money. She fought her frustration and disappointment. "I'm sorry I wasted your time, Mr. Dante. I'm afraid I can't afford that."

  He smiled. "Few can, my dear. Few can. But perhaps we can work out a trade; an exchange of services."

  "A trade?” Exactly what did this man have in mind? Stories as old as time of young women sold as sex slave flashed through her mind, but before she could voice concern or protest, Mr. Dante contin
ued.

  "In my line of business, I deal with hundreds of traders from all over the galaxy. I am fairly adept at discerning which ones are dealing with me honestly, and which are not. However, over time, many have grown clever in their deceit and, though I loathe admitting it, I am fallible. But you are not."

  A slight nervous ringing began in her ears. Exactly what was he suggesting? "I'm not sure I understand."

  "You are a Xenobian Priestess, are you not?” He waved his free hand to indicate her outfit.

  No, her mind screamed. "Yes."

  He smiled. "It is impossible for anyone to hide his or her true nature from a Xenobian Priestess. The entire galaxy knows this."

  "Perhaps.” She spoke tentatively, still not sure where this was leading. "I don't see what this has to do with my father."

  He'd been looking down to where his fingers stroked the top of the cat's head, but now raised his head until his look met hers. "I'm talking about an exchange of services. You tell me when my business associates are lying to me and I'll expend my personal resources toward finding your father."

  Her mind whirled, weighing her options. Could she do it? Without empathic abilities, she'd become adept at reading body language, but was that good enough to pull off such a deception?

  "If you’d rather not," Dante continued in her silence, "I will have Marcus make arrangements for your return to Hell's Gate. It is your choice."

  She felt trapped. This might be the only way she could find her father. Silently, she cursed Adrian Sun for not helping her and took a deep breath.

  “All right. You have a deal.”

  In the back of her mind, she heard a door slam shut.

  "Very good. It pleases me that you've accepted my offer. Let's start immediately, shall we? Marcus, please show in Mr. Zimmers.” Dante's voice filled the room as Phoenix tried to gather her scattered thoughts. Exactly what had she gotten herself into?

  Marcus crossed the room and opened the door. He nodded his head and then stood back while Mr. Zimmers, escorted by the two men she'd seen earlier, entered the room. The portly little man's eyes scanned the area, resting briefly on her before darting away.