Rayven's Keep

by Wolfe, Kylie

  “Fine, but you stick to me like we’re attached at the hip. Is that clear?”

  She nodded, and he saw the relief on her face

  “I mean it, Tru. You do exactly what I say without question or hesitation. You understand?”

  She nodded again, more vigorously this time.

  “Shit. I know I’m going to regret this,” he muttered, running his free hand across the back of his neck.

  “Captain, we are on final approach to Kaydet,” Siren announced. “Instructions?”

  “You know the drill, Siren. Contact the port for permission to land. Inform Dendera Labs we will be there shortly and let them know I’m here to meet with the Administrator, Pol Dirn. He should be expecting us if Geotern did what it was supposed to.” As he replied, he kept his gaze on Tru. He was going against his better judgment by giving in to her.

  “Acknowledged.”

  “C’mon, Tru, let’s suit up.” Nick sighed, rose from his seat and pulled her up with a gentle tug. “I want off this world as quickly as we can manage it.”

  * * * *

  The blast of icy wind was like a punch in the face, taking her breath away and stinging the tip of her nose where the protective hood of her coat had slipped down. She raised her gloved hands to tighten the fur-lined garment. Behind her tinted goggles, Tru scanned the desolate landscape awestruck by the designs etched in stark relief on drifts caused by the constant blowing snow. Visibility was poor beyond a few meters. Afraid she would lose him in the shifting light and near white out conditions, she clung to the back of Nick’s jacket.

  A few ships occupied the landing pad, dark hulking shapes adding to the surreal landscape. Drone vehicles crisscrossed the tarmac in a futile effort to keep it cleared of snow. The spaceport building looked like nothing more than a smudge on the landscape, but thankfully was not too far away.

  Nick plowed through the snow, forging a path for her to walk in. His body blocked the worst of the wind and protected her from the icy shards kicked up by the storm. Kaydet was as different from Lodestone as night from day, but both places were equally hellish in her opinion. Her mood didn’t improve with the comparison.

  The entrance to the port building was a series of doors, each space adding a layer of insulation from the outside weather. The relief from the wind was instantaneous as were the slightly warmer conditions in the first entrance. Nick stomped snow off his boots and brushed it from his heavy outerwear. Removing his goggles and gloves, he turned to help her. He pushed her fur-covered hood back and smiled reassuringly once he’d swept most of the snow off her. Her cheeks stung from the cold and she dreaded to think what might have happened without her protective gear. The warmth of his fingers as he skimmed them over her chilled face felt odd, but she found herself leaning into the light pressure enjoying the brief contact.

  “It will be easier going from here. There is a series of tunnels connecting the buildings, so we won’t be out in the weather again until we leave,” he said. “We just need to check in with the port authority with our plans and duration of stay.”

  “Whatever for?”

  “Policy. It wouldn’t be good for a visitor to get lost and end up dead from exposure.” He shrugged as if the matter was of little import. She followed him to the next set of doors, trying not to think about the horror of dying in this unforgiving landscape.

  The main offices of the port authority were much warmer, and she wished she could shed her jacket. Sweat trickled down her back and dampened her hairline. Nick didn’t seem to be affected in the least and it was a small point of irritation keeping her focused on her growing misery. She barely paid attention to the woman manning the desk as their plans were logged and directions were given for the maze of tunnels connecting the various buildings and businesses. She was too busy feeling uncomfortable until she noticed the woman flirting with Nick.

  Although she wouldn’t call the woman beautiful, she was attractive and exuded confidence. Tru scowled at her and moved closer to Nick’s side. The woman glanced at her dismissively and smiled at Nick, telegraphing her interest without subtlety. Tru’s irritation ratcheted, but she was saved from making a fool of herself when he put an arm around her and pulled her closer. The other woman exchanged a wry glance with Tru and her posture straightened until she was no longer leaning close to Nick. Tru tried not to gloat.

  “You are all set, Captain Rayven. Please check in before departure so we can account for your whereabouts,” the clerk said, her tone brisk and businesslike now she knew he was off limits.

  The well-traveled tunnels were brightly illuminated. Tru was surprised to realize there was a thriving community here, but couldn’t imagine what drew them to this cold world. Nick wasn’t inclined to talk and it took everything she had to keep up with his ground-eating stride. When he’d said he wanted business taken care of quickly, he wasn’t joking. His urgency transmitted itself to her and made her heart beat just a little harder. Anxiety she tried very hard to hide made her stay close to his tall form.

  * * * *

  Dendera Labs was huge, well lit and sterile-looking. Pol Dirn, a small, thin man of indeterminate age, greeted them upon their arrival and then escorted them to a plush office to their right.

  “I understand you have a mineral to be tested?” The question was directed at Nick as they took their seats. Pol Dirn settled behind his large desk and clasped his hands on the desktop. “Geotern thinks this could have potential as an alternative power source so I’m very interested in getting my hands on it to see if there is any basis for excitement.”

  Nick studied the man across from him. Warning signals were going off, but he couldn’t put his finger on what exactly disturbed him. “I was told to deliver the package to you and no one else,” he answered after a slight pause, “I just need you to sign off on the transfer for Geotern, acknowledging the delivery and then we’re out of here.”

  “Of course, of course.” Pol nodded and tapped information into his hand-held tablet. He gave a perfunctory smile before he scooted it across to Nick. “Look this over to verify its accuracy and then leave your thumb print in the lower right. It will be scanned and then an acknowledgement will be transmitted to Geotern’s offices. That should take care of it.”

  “I want a copy transmitted to my offices on Alludra as well.” Nick said, reading the contract in front of him. Everything looked in order and he pressed his thumb where indicated.

  “Excellent!” Pol’s smile looked more genuine as he rubbed his hands together. “Now if you will just hand over the package.”

  Nick reached inside his heavy coat and unfastened the tab to his lighter flight jacket underneath. He pulled out the pouch containing the mineral and handed it to Pol. He watched the other man, noting his hands held a slight tremor and his gaze skittered away, avoiding direct eye contact. His certainty grew something was off.

  “A most satisfactory conclusion to our business, Captain Rayven. I will turn the mineral over to the lab techs right away and get started with our testing.” Pol started to stand, but Nick held up a hand stopping him. Pol sank onto his chair and regarded him warily.

  “The documentation acknowledges the transfer of the mineral from me to Dendera Labs.” Nick raised an eyebrow and pinned Pol with a stare. “But I do not see documentation registering the mineral to Geotern Mining. I was contracted to make sure there is no mix up in the process.”

  “I don’t understand.” Pol frowned and ran a forefinger along his eyebrow, looking more worried than the question warranted.

  “Let me clarify this for you then so there is no misunderstanding. I’m not leaving this office until Geotern Mining is registered as the owner of all mineral rights associated with this sample.” Nick lifted a brow. “If you have trouble with this request, then we have a problem and I don’t like problems. Does that clear it up enough for you?”

  Pol Dirn looked like a small animal caught in a predator’s stare. Nick leaned forward in his chair and Pol shrank back.

&nbs
p; “Y-yes. Perfectly clear. Must have slipped my mind. So sorry,” he stammered, and reached for the hand-held tablet on his desktop. He scrolled through documentation until he found what he looked for. “Here it is. Ah, I just need your thumbprint as before.”

  Nick read over the document, making sure the mineral rights were correctly registered, and once he was satisfied, placed his thumb on the screen. “I think we will wait until the documents have been transmitted and acknowledged. It shouldn’t take long.” He stretched his mouth into a mirthless smile, making sure he showed a lot of teeth, and settled more comfortably in his chair.

  Pol gnawed at his bottom lip while he transmitted the documentation. It was obvious he was afraid of something, but faced with Nick’s large, implacable presence he did what he was told.

  Satisfied everything was now in order, Nick rose. “It’s been a real pleasure doing business with you. I will be sure to report our interaction to Geotern and to the proper individuals within Dendera Labs.” He dropped the pretense of a smile from his face and raised an eyebrow. “If I find there has been a problem with ownership of the mineral or the results from its testing go astray I will be sure to look you up. Count on it.”

  Wide eyed, Pol nodded and rubbed his palms on his pant legs. Nick rose to leave, followed closely by Tru. He was satisfied he’d secured Geotern’s rights.

  Nick ushered Tru from the offices and moved quickly down the tunnel headed to the Port Authority offices. Every instinct he had screamed danger, but he had no clear indication of where or what it was. He always trusted his instincts; it had saved his ass on more than one occasion.

  Tru trotted to keep up, her face flushed from exertion and a worried frown marring her smooth forehead. He appreciated she wasn’t asking questions and distracting him as she usually did.

  The corridor forked ahead and he slowed, motioning for her to stay behind him. It was unnaturally quiet in the corridor, the absence of people disturbing. He scanned the area ahead for the threat he could sense but not see.

  To get back to the ship, they needed to stay to the left. That corridor led them through the lively business section and to the Port exit. If memory served, the right corridor ended in storage units and was off limits. He moved forward with caution while reaching into his jacket to remove the blaster he’d tucked into a shoulder holster. Thumbing the safety off, he pointed the barrel down and held it pressed against his thigh out of immediate sight in case he’d misjudged the situation.

  Lights flickered ahead and then went out where the two corridors bisected, throwing the area into darkness. Cursing under his breath, he stopped and pressed Tru against the wall, sheltering her behind his much larger frame. Her small start of surprise seemed overly loud in the sudden silence.

  Adrenaline pumped hard and fast through his system, as he debated retracing their steps to Dendera Labs or taking their chances by pressing ahead. The lights behind them flickered off. Straining for the slightest sound, he waited until he heard the barest whisper of noise coming in their direction.

  “Whatever you do, stay behind me and stay low,” he ordered, barely above a whisper. She nodded, her fear almost palpable.

  “Now isn’t this interesting, Crowder. Looks like we captured ourselves a little tattletale and her bodyguard,” someone taunted, but he couldn’t see anyone. The sound bounced eerily off the smoothly curved walls making the speaker hard to pinpoint.

  Nick listened intently and raised his blaster, waiting for the next hint of movement to give him a fix on the owner of the voice.

  “Don’t that just beat all,” another man with a rasping voice replied conversationally. “Must be our lucky day.”

  “I wouldn’t be too sure,” Nick answered.

  “You’re outnumbered and last I checked it doesn’t look good for you,” the first man scoffed.

  The scrape of a boot across the floor was all it took, and Nick fired. A shocked, painful grunt let him know he’d hit his target, but not taken him out.

  “Friggin’ hell, Crowder...I’m hit.”

  “Shut up, you fool,” the man called Crowder hissed angrily. “Stick to the plan or you’ll get us all killed.”

  Before he could react, Nick was struck from the side by a heavy weight, which took him down and knocked his blaster out of his hand. He landed hard, hitting his head as the force of his attacker skidded them both across the rough floor. Fighting for leverage, Nick freed an arm and delivered a powerful punch to his assailant’s jaw. The man’s head snapped back and his grip loosened. Nick rose to one knee and gained his feet.

  Fighting dizziness from the blow to his head, he blocked the punches thrown his way and managed a roundhouse kick connecting with a satisfying thud. He followed the kick with lightning fast fists, driving his attacker back. Tru screamed from somewhere behind him as he broke the nose of his opponent, dropping him like a stone. He spun toward her. Lights suddenly lit the corridor like the midday sun, temporarily blinding him, making him blink rapidly.

  Fists raised, he crouched, ready to defend her, only to be brought up short when he realized she was held immobile by a beefy arm across her throat and a blaster pointed at her head. Frightened blue eyes were wide in her colorless face, and his gut twisted with helpless rage because he hadn’t protected her after all.

  “If you don’t want to see this cute little thing get hurt, you will keep your hands where I can see them.”

  He recognized the voice as belonging to the one called Crowder. Nick judged him to be hired muscle, the kind who had few scruples and a violent nature. He wouldn’t hesitate to inflict pain on his unlucky victims.

  Breathing hard from the fight, Nick straightened and raised his hands to shoulder level. A glance located the man he’d shot, his left arm cradled against his chest. Pale and sweating, he glowered at Nick. He heard the third man stirring behind him and braced for what he knew was coming.

  Chapter 17

  Consciousness returned slowly, painfully. Nick heard Tru crying above him and felt her ice-cold fingers flutter over his face. He forced one eye open between swollen eyelids and attempted to bring her pale face into focus. He hurt everywhere; the simple act of drawing a breath was agonizing because of his bruised and cracked ribs. He’d survived the beating, and was thankful his heavy jacket had prevented too much damage from being inflicted by his infuriated captors. Small consolation now he was awake and aware of every ache and pain in his abused body.

  He couldn’t prevent a groan from escaping between his cracked and bloody lips when she leaned too heavily against his chest.

  “I’m sorry...so sorry,” she crooned. A warm tear trickled down her cheek and plopped against the corner of his injured mouth. He felt her brush it away with careful tenderness.

  “Where are we?” he croaked, tasting blood from his split lip. He tried to sit up and bit back a moan. Resting on one elbow, he cradled his ribs with his other arm and breathed shallowly through the burning pain and cold sweat coating his body.

  “We’re in a storage unit off the main corridor. Are you all right?” Tru’s voice hitched with suppressed tears. “How badly are you hurt?”

  “Help me sit up, will you?” His voice lacked its usual strength, but he injected enough steel in his tone to have her hasten to obey.

  Moving so she was better positioned, she helped as much as she could while he struggled to prop himself against the smooth wall of their cell. Both were panting from the effort by the time he was settled. Nick rested his head against the wall and took inventory of his injuries. None were life threatening just painful. His ribs would cause some problems, but he’d worked through worse while in Tonlith’s military. Nothing was broken and he was grateful.

  “There is a small pouch attached to my utility belt with med supplies,” he said, his breathing more normal now he wasn’t moving. “There are some ’gesic strips and a spray to seal the cuts on my hands and face. I don’t think I can manage to get them, Tru. You need to do it, okay?”

  She wiped the t
ears from her face with the heel of her hands and bit her bottom lip. She took a deep breath and then moved aside his heavy coat. He knew she was making every effort to be gentle as she skimmed her hands along the woven belt around his waist until she found the small pouch attached near his right hip. She slid her fingers under the tab, opened it and dug out the items he requested. She also pulled out bandages and a small tube of antibacterial cream.

  She tore open the ’gesic packet and waited for him to open his mouth before she dropped the strip on his tongue. While it dissolved, she cleaned up the dried blood on his face. He hissed in a breath when she dabbed at the corner of his mouth, but remained stoic from then on. She lifted one of his large, scarred hands to smooth the cream over his knuckles before sealing the cuts with the spray. He was surprised when she laid a tender kiss on his palm before placing it back on his thigh.

  “Is the ’gesic helping?” she asked.

  “Mmm. I’ll be good as new before you know it,” he lied, offering a ghost of a smile. Searching her face, he noted her huge, dilated eyes and the spasmodic jerks of muscles reacting to extreme stress. “How are you, sweetheart? Did they hurt you?”

  “No. No, I’m fine.” Her gaze skittered away from his, and she smoothed a hand over his jacket.

  “Tru?” He captured her fluttering hand in one of his own and brought it to his chest. “Tell me what happened.” It was a gentle demand.

  “I was just threatened, Nick. It was nothing,” she insisted. “Nothing I can’t handle.”

  Nick had a fairly good idea of what the threats had been and white-hot rage boiled through his system blinding him to his surroundings for an instant. He was sure they had been vile and delivered in graphic detail. The last clear memory he had before he’d lost consciousness was Tru struggling in Crowder’s grip. One beefy arm had been around her neck while his other hand wandered under her jacket. Crowder’s leering and triumphant smile had been focused on him, knowing he was helpless to stop what happened.