Starbreaker

by Amanda Bouchet

  Kicks, blocks, punches, parries. Merrick’s cross whistled through the air next to her head, missing by inches. He let out a grunt of frustration. Gliding back, Sanaa produced a knife, waved it around, and flung it aside. Merrick watched her cheerfully taunt him, his expression stony.

  “Oh look! Here’s another.” She threw a second blade aside. Then a third. Then a fourth. Where’s she hiding all those? “You would be dead by now if I wanted to kill you.”

  “Why don’t you two just arm-wrestle and be done with it?” Fiona called out.

  Jax stifled a laugh. I gave them both the stink eye, but something about watching Merrick and Sanaa go at each other without any real malice was oddly electrifying and almost arousing. I glanced at Shade, wondering if he was feeling the same heightened…something.

  He gave me a knowing look. A hot smirk and a half wink that made my belly do a pleasant little flip-flop. Warmth stole over me.

  Sanaa strode toward the Endeavor, de facto ending the contest before Merrick lost a tooth, an eye, his pride, or worse. Not a hair of her tight bun was out of place. There wasn’t a scratch on her. And no bruising that I could see, although her dark skin might hide it. “I prefer my meals in the kitchen. Thank you for your hospitality.”

  “I prefer my meals without the Dark Watch,” Merrick muttered, glowering at Sanaa as she passed him.

  She tossed him a grin over her shoulder. “Darling, I’m many things. The Dark Watch is only one of them.”

  She hopped aboard the Endeavor as though she hadn’t just brawled with a super soldier, crouched briefly to scratch the soft fur under Bonk’s chin—and he let her—and then moved deeper into the ship. To poke around, presumably. Good thing I had nothing to hide. She already knew more about me than I did.

  “Bring my knives, will you?” Sanaa called from around the corner.

  I huffed, looking at my crew and taking in Merrick’s sparking-mad eyes and split lip in the process. “Well, I guess that’s settled.”

  Shade’s low laugh followed me up into the Endeavor.

  Chapter 10

  SHADE

  We’d just finished dinner when a hell of a racket kicked up at the entrance of the Endeavor. The starboard side was still wide open, along with all the interior doors, even though hangar air on Mooncamp 1 didn’t seem any better than the ship’s recycled oxygen. The shouts and pounding reached us in the kitchen and sent Bonk running for cover only a few minutes after he’d finally deigned to hop into Tess’s lap. He took off like a gray streak, leaving her hand suspended in mid-pat.

  She frowned after her cat but didn’t seem worried about the hullabaloo coming down the hallway.

  “What’s this pile of nuts and bolts doing in my hangar?” a male voice called out.

  “I knew it.” Tess smiled. “That’s Frank—or I’ll eat everyone’s disgusting leftovers.”

  “No bet.” Jax shook his head and pushed his half-eaten plate of food away from him. “You’ll win and make us do something awful.”

  I wasn’t sure what could be more awful than that dinner. I’d had some revolting meals lately, but this one topped the list. The Mooncamp’s head food coordinator, Raz Romo, had stopped by earlier with some kind of meat slop in unmarked cans with no expiration date. The small guy with a buzz cut and glasses didn’t even blink at providing such dubious food for the Endeavor’s welcome-and-thanks-for-feeding-us dinner, and the crew of the Endeavor didn’t even blink at accepting it. At least fresh bread and ripe fruit from the Aisé Resort had helped wash down the stomach acid the meal had churned up.

  “Bailey!” the man at the entrance shouted. “I’m coming for you, you tall drink of water.”

  Tess snorted. “Definitely Frank.”

  Enthusiastic drumming echoed down the corridors along with more hoots and hollering.

  Fiona got up first, grinning. She left the kitchen and half jogged toward the racket, her high ponytail swinging. We followed, our boots adding to the thumping that reverberated throughout the ship. A group of two men and three women stood just below us outside the starboard doorway. Fiona squealed and threw herself out at them with zero hesitation. The man at the front caught her and swung her around, laughing. He gave her a loud, smacking kiss on the lips before setting her down next to him and keeping one arm around her.

  My focus automatically shifted to Jax. A now-familiar walled-off expression rose to mask whatever he was feeling, but there was no concealing the steel rod that replaced his spine or how stiff his shoulders looked. He’d never said a word to me about Fiona, but some things were obvious. He’d completely shut down when she’d been injured—no sleep, no food, that blank look giving away whatever he thought he was hiding. I didn’t know what he was waiting for. If he didn’t get his head in the game soon, she might find another player for herself.

  Fiona pulled away from the tall blond guy with a laugh. He was undeniably good-looking, about thirty-five with fair coloring and electric blue eyes. She turned to the others with a big smile.

  “Asher!” Fiona opened her arms. The second man shuffled forward and engulfed her in a hug that was as stout as he was. She disappeared for a couple of seconds before emerging again, flushed with happiness.

  She hugged two of the women at once next—twins with the same light-brown hair and eyes, medium height, and sharp, angular features. They all bounced a little before launching into a secret handshake. It was the kind of thing kids do behind buildings before getting into trouble. Fiona looked different, genuinely lighter. A part of her was so often on edge, like a pot ready to boil over. I had a feeling a lot of that simmering was due to Jax—who did his own fair share of stewing.

  Fiona turned to the third woman. “Nic! When did you join Frank’s crew? I thought you were taking it easy for a while.”

  The final crewmember, Nic, smiled and hugged Fiona. She was striking and tall, with high, pronounced cheekbones, a wide mouth, straight black hair, brown skin, hazel eyes, and a jaw that was squarer than most. Her voice came out low and gravelly, hinting at damaged vocal cords. “About three universal months ago. Taking it easy got boring. Too much air traffic controlling and not enough blowing shit up and stealing.”

  “We’ve had plenty of that lately,” Fiona said wryly.

  “Then we’ll follow you guys around for some action.” Nic’s face brightened, but her rusty-gear words triggered a shot of adrenaline inside me.

  I tensed and looked at Tess. We were headed to Starbase 12. I sure as hell hoped they wouldn’t follow us.

  Tess grinned and didn’t look worried. “Your hangar, Frank?” She hopped down from the Endeavor and tossed a light play punch into the blond guy’s shoulder. She didn’t give hugs, and no one seemed to expect it. She moved toward the stockier, brown-haired Asher, though, and gave him a special smile I couldn’t interpret. He smiled back, his ruddy cheeks dimpling.

  Jax, Merrick, Mwende, and I exited the ship after her. Jax offered handshakes and a wide but slightly strained smile, especially when it fell on the strapping captain.

  Frank looked us over and then peered into the open, empty doorway of the Endeavor. He frowned, asking softly, “What happened to your crew, Bailey?”

  Tess glanced down. It took her a second to answer. “Miko got hit. A bullet. She’s gone. Shiori was captured. The Dark Watch has her.”

  Frank paled, his eyes widening. “I’m so sorry. Shit, I’m sorry.” His hand moved to his chest, pressing like it hurt suddenly.

  His crew echoed him. Every single one of them looked sick, shocked, and saddened. One of the twins took a shuddering breath. Asher sniffled.

  Tess swallowed hard, squared her shoulders, and introduced us. “This is Shade: navigator and mechanic. Merrick Maddox: hard-core rebel and all-around badass. And this is Sanaa.” Tess hesitated. “Personal security expert.”

  Tess hadn’t outed Mwende, which meant she’d just given us al
l the signal to treat the lieutenant like anyone else here, like a rebel Nightchaser.

  We all did some nodding and mumbling that felt pretty generic before Tess launched into the remaining introductions.

  “This is Frank, Asher, Macey, Caeryssa, and Nic of the Unholy Stench.”

  My brows shot up. “You named your ship that?”

  Frank nodded, humor glinting in his eyes again. “I named her after the state of the galaxy. If we ever get rid of the stink, I’ll rename her.”

  I smiled, relaxing. Tess seemed comfortable with these people, and I trusted her judgment. “Sounds fair,” I answered.

  Asher turned to Tess. “Have you seen Coltin lately?”

  “Yes!” She lit up like a firecracker, and something twisted in my chest. Her joy was magnificent, but the fact that I had no fucking idea who Coltin was stung hard and fast.

  “Starway 8 just got hit by a big epidemic—a really nasty virus. We brought some cure-alls we’d managed to gather, and it was exactly what they needed.” She sobered. “Coltin looked bad. He scared the crap out of me, but he came around. I saw him getting better before I left.”

  “Wow. That’s a relief.” Asher scrubbed a hand through his hair. Despite his words, worry still cramped his face.

  Tess glanced at me. “Asher is Coltin’s uncle. Coltin is this amazing kid on Starway 8, kind of like my little brother.”

  So a child, not one of the adults who worked at the orphanage. “How old is he?” He couldn’t be too young if Tess had formed an attachment to him there. She’d been out of that place for eight years.

  “Eleven,” she answered. “Well, almost twelve.” She brightened all over just thinking about this kid Coltin.

  Until now, Starway 8 had only two names and faces for me: Mareeka and Surral. I’d barely noticed the administrators I hadn’t been introduced to while I gritted my teeth against a throbbing gunshot wound and we all reeled from the confrontation with the Overseer.

  Tess turned back to Asher. “I left a message for him to study his math, but I doubt he’ll listen.” Her freckles bunched together as she wrinkled her nose. “I think he likes numbers as much as I do.”

  Asher shook his head with a chuckle. “That’s because you’ve filled his head with too many stories. Now, all he wants to do is read more books about treasure hunts across the galaxy and swashbuckling space pirates.”

  Her eyes sparkled. “Then he’ll definitely join you on Frank’s crew when he’s older.” Tess’s broad smile landed on the blond captain, and I felt an annoying stab of jealousy.

  “Or he’ll join you,” Asher said pointedly.

  Tess nodded. The kid was eleven, though, and she had other plans for the future. We’d see what happened.

  “Bailey always finds the best treasures.” Frank winked at Tess, his compliment sending a hint of pink across her features.

  I’d never seen her look flushed or shy with anyone but me before, and I honestly hated it. I liked Frank, though, and I could tell his esteem meant something to her.

  Tess waved his praise away with a quick “Whatever,” but her not-quite-hidden smile got bigger.

  “What did you guys bring for the Mooncamps?” one of the twins, Macey, asked. She dragged her booted toe along the floor of the hangar, leaving a streak in the grit that coated this whole place from top to bottom.

  “A fuckton of food,” Fiona answered. “We’ve been carting it around for ages but couldn’t get here. You?” she asked.

  “Same, although I wouldn’t call it a fuckton,” Macey answered. “Still, it was worth the trip here so that we can reload with the new haul we’re about to go after.”

  “Got a tip on a heist?” Tess asked. “We could double crew it.”

  “That would actually be really good,” Frank answered thoughtfully. “But you’ve gotta be ready to go in twenty-four hours. Dark Watch supply ships just restocked the security hub orbiting Ewelock. They’re preparing for a major personnel shift. According to the message we hacked into, new people are arriving to man the starbase tomorrow. There’ll be a flood of people in. Others leaving. Ships all over the place. I say we redirect a few cargo attachments before they figure out who’s actually supposed to be there.”

  “Your intel is correct,” Mwende offered.

  I stiffened, seeing the same slight hardening in Tess. How was Mwende going to explain knowing that? “I’m General Bridgebane’s personal bodyguard” probably wouldn’t go over well here—or anywhere full of Nightchasers.

  “Ah, good. You heard the same thing?” Frank asked.

  The lieutenant nodded. The prickly feeling of sitting on a mountain of hair-trigger explosives built inside me. But they didn’t question her further, and nothing detonated.

  A tightness that had nothing to do with anxiety tugged my ribs together. So, this was how it felt to be a part of something. A team. Almost an extended family. Sanaa Mwende was with the crew of the Endeavor. Frank and his group took her at face value, just like that. Tess was letting it happen, which told me exactly which side she’d come down on in terms of trusting her uncle. Tess was no believer, but she still knew how to take a leap of faith.

  “Twenty-four hours? We can manage that.” Tess didn’t show any of the concern I was feeling about taking on a new mission before we’d even started planning the Starbase 12 rescues. Maybe she was more fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants than I’d realized—and maybe I wasn’t impulsive enough for this new life.

  She turned to us. “What do you guys think?”

  Both Jax and Fiona confirmed they were okay with it. Merrick rumbled something to the effect of “Finally getting some action around here,” as though we hadn’t just fought for our lives on Korabon. Mwende didn’t comment. She just stood there, apparently ready for anything.

  “Sounds okay.” I shrugged, going along with the majority. The ship was at nearly full power. We had four days before we had to be anywhere, and planning the Starbase 12 break-in without knowing what Bridgebane had to offer, if anything, felt a lot like tossing ideas into a pot, stirring, and seeing what didn’t sink to the bottom. We could do this Ewelock heist. I just hoped nothing prevented us from getting to Bridgebane’s drop point. Or, worse, derailed us from the main mission.

  “Do you guys have a plan?” I asked, directing my question at Frank.

  He nodded. “We’ll go over the details later, but in a nutshell, we’re going to hit the spine of cargo holds crawling up the outside of the spacedock. Upper levels A through O are food containers.” He glanced at Tess’s ship. “We can vacuum seal any two onto the Unholy Stench and you can latch two onto the Endeavor. We’d have only gone for one attachment without you guys, but it’ll go a lot faster with Tess working her lock magic. You float ’em, and we’ll snatch ’em up from the outside. You up for that, Bailey?”

  “Have I ever said no?” Tess asked in challenge.

  “Not to that,” Frank answered flirtatiously.

  Tess’s cheeks reddened, and I had to combat the urge to stake my claim to her. Wrapping my arm around her shoulders and hauling her against my side was both what I wanted to do and what I knew I shouldn’t. She liked a little caveman possessive in bed, that hint of dominance, but I doubted she’d appreciate it anywhere else, and especially not when she was talking business.

  Corralling my baser urges, I asked, “Lock magic?” Tess had told me once that she could override any lock. Maybe I’d finally know how.

  “I’ll show you.” The quick smile she flashed me looked stiff around the edges. What could she possibly have to be nervous about? Especially with me?

  Asher covered a belch with his hand. “Did Raz give you that unidentifiable shit for dinner?” He grimaced, looking suddenly green around the gills. Another burble rumbled in his gullet.

  Fiona pretend-retched. “That was worse than usual. We bring them stuff, and they thank us by giving us the exp
ired crap nobody wants anymore. Raz is going to be sorry when all the Nightchasers feeding his Mooncamps are dead from food poisoning.”

  “I swear it was regurgitated rubber coated in sludge.” Asher laid a hand over the center of his chest, looking like his dinner was about to come back up.

  “Don’t think about it,” Fiona said sharply. “Engines. Cocktails. Puppies!”

  Asher frowned at her. “What are you shouting about, Fi?”

  “Just trying to distract you.” Fiona shrugged. “This hangar already stinks enough without you throwing up all over it.”

  “The hangar doesn’t stink.” Tess leaned forward and sniffed. “That’s Frank.”

  Frank danced in on a boxer’s shuffle and gave Tess a light shove. “I am captain of the Unholy Stench.” He grinned at her. Tess laughed.

  I held very still. It was an actual physical effort not to touch her myself after that, not to hold her hand or put my palm on the small of her back. Tess hadn’t introduced me as anything other than her navigator and mechanic. I didn’t know what she wanted her friends to think, and it wasn’t my place to decide for her. Now, I just had to convince my male body of that when it was operating more on a Club rival, claim mate level.

  “The stink comes from flying through the shit of the Overseer.” Caeryssa’s sharp features twisted in distaste. “He crapped out the Dark Watch, and now his excrement is literally all over the place.”

  “Speaking of that unholy stench,” Frank said, “did you guys see Novalight’s latest transmission?”

  “No… When was it?” Tess’s eyes filled with wariness. “We’ve been lying low and out of touch for the last few days.”

  “Yesterday, eighteen hundred hours, u-time.” Frank pulled a hand-sized tablet from his pocket. “Now you can all get ready to vomit,” he added with zero humor in his voice.

  He went to his recordings and tapped on the latest entry. The Galactic Overseer’s face filled the screen. Brown eyes in a square, unforgiving face stared straight out from the tablet at us. Short brown hair hugged his scalp like a helmet, accentuating the brutish cut of his chin and his unanimated, robotic appearance. Honestly, a well-made robot probably had more feeling than he did. All this man cared about was his own aggrandizement. And holding on to power.