“Good shooting,” the vampire said. “But you can stop now.”
She peeked through her lashes. Bodies littered the ground.
He was running up the ramp.
Almost there.
They came to a halt at the top and he shifted her in his arms so he could reach out one hand and press it palm down to the panel. The double-doors slid open just as a movement behind her caught her gaze.
“More coming.”
“How the hell many more are there?” He almost hurled her into the ship so she crashed to the floor, then dived in after her as a blast of laser shots slammed into the ramp where they’d been standing seconds ago. Tannis lay on her side, heart thundering as he crawled across the floor, shooting with one hand. The guards were close, already running onto the ramp.
They were going to die and she’d never felt more alive in her entire life.
Then the vampire slammed his fist on the panel and the doors closed with a hiss.
He glanced across as beneath her, the floor rumbled and the engines fired up. Wiping the blood from his face, he caught her gaze and cast her a wicked grin.
“Welcome to El Cazador, captain.”
At his words, a burst of laughter escaped her. The sound was strange—and she realized she couldn’t remember the last time she had laughed. But she was alive and she was a captain. For a second she lay on her back and giggled. Probably hysterics, but right now she didn’t care.
Finally, rolling onto her side, she watched as the vampire pulled himself to his feet and brushed himself down.
She took a deep breath. “So who are you?”
“Ricardo Sanchez—Rico to my friends.”
“And what do you want, Rico?”
“Hell, I just want to have fun.”
Chapter 1
el Cazador, year: 3049
“You do know that this is probably a huge mistake?”
Tannis slammed her spoon down and glared at Skylar. “Yeah, I know. And you know how I know, because you’ve told me like a gazillion times.”
Skylar, as usual, didn’t seem in the least intimidated by the fierce look. Her inhuman violet eyes studied Tannis for a moment, then she shrugged. “Well, even you have to admit that there’s something extremely odd about the most powerful man in the known universe asking for our help.”
“Maybe he’s heard that we’re the best,” Rico drawled from beside her.
Skylar grinned. “Yeah, but the best at what? And why would he hear that?”
“Because we are?” He leaned in and kissed the side of her neck where Tannis could see the faint fang marks. As a member of the Collective, Skylar was tough, almost impossible to kill, but still it might be best to get the ship stocked up with iron supplement if she planned to play around with Rico for any length of time.
And amazingly, it looked like that was the case. Tannis couldn’t get her head around it—Rico in love. It was as though she’d slipped into some weird alternative dimension where nothing made sense.
But even Tannis had to admit that however much Skylar wound her up, she was perfect for Rico. Skylar stood her ground, didn’t take any shit, and they looked good together. Rico’s long, lean figure was dressed all in black with black knee high boots, his shoulder length hair pulled back in a ponytail that showed off his perfect bone structure. Skylar was matching, in a black jumpsuit, a laser pistol holstered at her waist; her blond hair cut military short, her violet eyes glowing. They sat close together, almost touching. It wasn’t only a physical closeness, but a mental bond as well, and a small prick of some unrecognizable emotion stabbed Tannis in the middle.
She didn’t want that sort of intimacy with anyone—it was the last thing she wanted—she hated to be touched. Many nights, she still woke up in a cold sweat as her subconscious relived those years in the research station. All the same, something ached inside her chest when she saw them together. She’d never imagined Rico would fall in love.
He was her friend, and she was glad for him. Really, she was.
That didn’t mean she had to put up with watching them over the supper table.
“Yuk,” she muttered. The bloody ship was turning into some sort of love nest, and she wasn’t sure she liked it. Actually, she knew she didn’t like it. Everywhere she went, she tripped over some canoodling couple. It was enough to put her off her dinner.
Though at least Jon and Alex—the newly-weds—were out of the way. They’d dropped them off on Trakis Two to ensure the place was safe for their arrival.
Tannis pushed her plate away, sat back in her chair, and studied the pair opposite, allowing her upper lip to curl up in disdain.
Rico grinned at her expression. “I reckon the captain has a crush on our new client, and it’s making her snarky.”
“More snarky than usual you mean?” Skylar asked Tannis gritted her teeth. “Ha-ha.”
“Why shouldn’t she have a crush?” Daisy glanced up from her food. “After all, Callum Meridian is the most powerful man in the universe. And he has wings. How cool is that?”
Across the table, Skylar twitched as if she could already feel the appendages sprouting from her own back.
“I’d love wings,” Daisy said dreamily, tucking a strand of dark green hair behind her ear.
Tannis picked up her spoon and began playing with her food.
Of course, she didn’t have a freaking crush on Callum Meridian.
She might be a little intrigued, but that was only because she’d always had a fascination for the Collective, and he was the oldest and most powerful of their kind.
A shiver ran through her as an image of those glowing violet eyes flashed in her mind. They’d had a brief meeting just over a month ago where she’d acted like a tongue tied moron and hardly said a word. Though there hadn’t been much to say. He’d been in the process of attempting to kill them all, and she’d gazed at him like a star-struck teenager. But he’d been beautiful; so beautiful he’d made her ache.
But she didn’t have a crush.
She was just restless, unable to shake the feeling that everything was changing. For fifteen years, she’d worked side by side with Rico. They’d watched each other’s backs, even saved each other’s lives on occasion. Other crew had come and gone, but they’d stayed together. He was her best friend, and now he had someone more important in his life.
She took a mouthful of food, but tasted nothing.
In her time as captain of El Cazador, she’d amassed a small fortune. This last job would give her enough to apply for the Meridian treatment, and finally become one of the exalted Collective, immortal, never having to fear death.
And that would change things again. Her dream was finally within her grasp, and she couldn’t understand why she felt so unsettled.
She’d put aside her plans for revenge, partly because getting the Meridian treatment was her priority. Once she achieved that, she would have time enough for everything else. But also because she’d realized, with Rico’s help, that she couldn’t allow hatred to control her life. That wasn’t the person she wanted to be. Rico was old, he’d lived over fifteen hundred years, and while he wasn’t always wise, he’d learned a lot about survival in that time. Not only physical but mental as well. He’d told her there was no point in living forever if you didn’t enjoy it. He’d warned her about making her whole life about revenge, because once you’d obtained it, you were left with nothing.
Janey strolled into the galley. Perfectly groomed as always, long red hair artfully styled; Janey would have made Tannis feel totally inept as a woman if she hadn’t known that the ship’s beautiful and brilliant tech expert actually had more issues with men than even Tannis did. The good looks were a mask she hid behind. She pulled out a chair, sank down and then leaned forward toward Tannis.
“You know, captain, I’ve been thinking.”
“You have?” Why did she get the impression that whatever it was Janey had been thinking, she wasn’t going to like it?
“Yes. I’ve b
een going over the intel, and I reckon this is probably a really bad idea.”
This time, Tannis put her spoon down very slowly and looked around the table. Skylar’s face held no expression. Rico was grinning.
“Okay,” she said, keeping her tone even. “Time for a reality check. Who the hell is captain here?”
Janey answered. “You’re the captain, Tannis.”
Tannis would have felt better if the words hadn’t been accompanied by the flicker of a smile.
“Yes, I’m captain, and we’ve already agreed to do the job. My honor is at stake.”
Someone sniggered, but she ignored the sound.
“It’s just…” Janey obviously didn’t know when to shut up, but the glare Tannis shot her way did the trick. Her mouth snapped closed and she shrugged.
“I don’t get it,” Tannis said. “This job is going to pay good money. Hell, more than good—brilliant money.”
“I didn’t like him,” Rico said. “Except the wings—I liked them a lot.”
“He was trying to kill us—what was there to like?” Tannis ran a hand through her short hair. “Anyway, since when have we needed to like our clients—as long as their money is good, who gives a fuck what they’re like?”
“I don’t trust him,” Janey added.
“You weren’t even there.”
“I’ve been doing some research and something’s not right.
The whole thing is giving off bad vibes.”
“Holy freaking Meridian. Give me a break.”
Rico studied her for a moment, and then he nodded. “Okay.
It’s your call, but let’s just be careful on this one.”
Tannis frowned. Rico was never careful. Hell, he was usually totally reckless, the more dangerous a job, the more he was eager to jump right in. Maybe he was scared for Skylar. Maybe that’s what being in love did for you; made you worried for the one you loved. Still, the strangeness of his behavior added to her unease as though there was something not quite right with her world.
“So have we heard from him?” Daisy asked. “Do we know where the rendezvous point is?”
“Not yet. He said someone would contact us nearer the time.”
They were in orbit over Trakis Five, which in itself was enough to make everybody twitchy. Trakis Five was where the headquarters of the Collective was based. Together with their own personal army—the Corps. Nobody wanted to mess with the Corps, and it was hard to forget that only weeks ago El Cazador had been on the run with the Collective in deadly pursuit. Their differences had been resolved—sort of—but all the same, she guessed they’d all rather be a long way from this particular planet.
“Nearer what time?” Janey asked. “He’s still not made that announcement—we would have heard.”
“No, there’s been nothing.”
At their first and only meeting, Callum had indicated that he was soon to make an announcement to the world in general about the nature of the Collective. So far, very few people were aware of the wing thing. It was one of the reasons he’d let them go—the Collective were about to come clean—although “clean”
was maybe not quite the right word. Of course, there was also the fact that they had just threatened to tell the whole world how the supposedly totally indestructible Collective could be destroyed.
That was the one that had clinched it, and somewhat reluctantly, Callum had called off his Corps who were poised to kill them all.
“Okay, we wait then,” Rico said. “In the meantime, we have important things to do…alone.” He stood up and held out his hand to Skylar who slid her palm in his and rose to her feet.
Sweet Jesus, Tannis had honestly never thought she’d see Rico holding hands. Yup, the world as she knew it was gone forever.
She needed a drink.
At that moment, Skylar gave a small cry of pain, put her hand to head, and swayed. Rico caught her as her knees gave out.
Tannis jumped to her feet. “What’s the matter?”
“How the hell should I know?” Rico sank back down in his chair with Skylar in his arms. Her eyes were closed, but behind the lids, they were moving rapidly. Rico shifted her so she lay across his lap, and stroked his hand over her head, down her cheek.
“Sweetheart, wake up.”
For a minute, it looked like she wouldn’t respond, then she blinked. Her violet eyes were dazed, but they cleared rapidly.
“That was Callum Meridian.” Her voice filled with awe.
“Couldn’t he have commed, like any normal person?” Janey asked.
But then Callum Meridian was hardly normal—and why comm when you shared a telepathic link with all the members of the Collective, including Skylar.
Tannis frowned. “I thought you had to let them in—that anyone who wanted to make contact had to ask first.”
“Usually, that’s true.” She pinched the bridge of her nose, then shook her head. “He was so powerful. It was like being hit with a blaster shot at close range.”
“Fucking bastard,” Rico snarled. “What the hell would have happened if he’d pulled that stunt while you were doing something dangerous? He could have killed you.”
“You know we’re not that easy to kill.”
“That’s beside the fucking point.”
“So what did he say?” Tannis tried to keep the excitement from her voice, but knew she’d failed when Rico shot her a dirty look.
“He wants us there now,” Skylar replied.
“Where?”
“Down on the planet. He’s transmitting a code to the ship to guide us in, and he wants us to be ready to take-off fast.”
“And did he say why?”
She shook her head.
“Why doesn’t that surprise me,” Rico muttered. “Arrogant bastard.”
Janey jumped up from her place at the table. “Let’s have a look at what’s going on.” She strolled across the room in her high heels and switched on one of the viewing screens. The monitor showed a large stadium filled with milling people. An empty podium stood at the front.
“Apparently, the Collective are about to make an announcement—”
“About bloody time.”
“—and the whole world’s listening.”
A wave of excitement was building inside her. This was it.
“Let’s get to the bridge,” she ordered. “Make sure we’re ready for that fast get away.” Her mind was already turning over the possibilities. Would he come on board? Why did they need to leave fast? What was he actually going to reveal to the world?
“Tannis—”
She paused in the doorway as Rico spoke her name. “Yes?”
“Be careful.”
It came to her then. Rico wasn’t worried about Skylar; he was worried about her.
…
“We think you’re making a big mistake.”
Callum broke off the contact with Skylar and opened his eyes.
Looking around the room, he had an urge to crawl under the table and sleep away the rest of this meeting. He’d long ago reached the conclusion, that being the most powerful man in the whole universe was not all it was cracked up to be.
In fact, the job was a pile of shit.
Some days, he thought he might scream from the constant, petty-minded bureaucracy that was his life. But even in a never-ending string of boring, meeting-filled days, this one was pretty high up on his list of “times that make me wish I’d never encountered Meridian”.
Yeah, he knew the Council thought it a mistake to go public with the changes the Collective were going through—they’d been telling him constantly for a month now.
He shoved his chair back, jumped to his feet, and paced the chamber, only turning to face his Council when he reached the far wall. He flexed his wings and every single one of them winced.
Well, everyone except the colonel who stood at the back, leaning against the wall, arms folded across his chest, a slight smile on his face.
What do you think? Is it a mistake? Cal
lum spoke in his mind on a level that wouldn’t be picked up by the others.
Probably. The colonel gave a small shrug. You’re fighting a losing battle—they’re afraid.
What about you? Callum asked. Are you afraid?
Nah.
You ever been afraid?
Nah.
The colonel wore the uniform of the Collective’s private army, the Corps, a black jumpsuit with the violet insignia at his chest. He was the best soldier Callum had ever encountered, but he looked like a boy dressed up. He’d been eighteen when he’d taken the Meridian treatment, and while some people changed, the colonel hadn’t aged at all in the years since. But while he hadn’t been a boy in over three hundred years, he was still two hundred years younger than the rest of the council. This small group was the first to have encountered Meridian, and that was over five hundred years ago when they’d crash landed on Trakis Seven.
“I wish you wouldn’t do that,” Tyler muttered.
It took Callum a moment to realize he meant the wing thing, and he flexed them again.
Tyler leaned back in his chair and winced again, this time from pain. He’d amputated his own wings—an operation that needed to be repeated every few weeks as they simply grew back.
But Callum liked his wings and had no wish to cut them off.
He’d been practicing in private and now could actually fly short distances—how cool was that? He’d promised the council that he would give them this last month to decide what was to be done, but he couldn’t wait until he could go outside and fly for real.
He flexed them again just to piss the Council off a little more and caught a grin on the colonel’s face. Then he sighed. He wanted their cooperation and this probably wasn’t the way to go about getting it.
But hell, the wings were great. He gave them one last little flap, bit back his smile at their sour expressions, and folded them neatly.
“We still believe it’s in all our best interest to keep this under wraps,” Tyler said. He was obviously the spokesman, and it was clear he was speaking for all of them.
“How long can we do that?” Callum stalked up to the table and placed his palms down on the smooth metal, staring into each face, searching for some sign that they were breaking, but they were resolute as ever. Stubborn bloody bastards. “I’m done with skulking away.”
Nina Croft Page 2