Deadly Pursuit (A Blood Hunter Novel, #2)

by Nina Croft

  He’d told her he liked to do the chasing, so she’d backed off, but the effort was killing her. She had too many years of watching life from a distance. Now, she was fighting the urge to grab hold of what she wanted. Some inner sense screamed that time was short. She just wasn’t sure how short. The Collective could catch up with them at any moment.

  So, while she was letting Jon take the lead, he was only going to be allowed to run things for a short time. She’d realized today, when he’d been so angry to find her outside the cathedral, that he was scared. Scared of letting himself care. Scared of failing to keep her safe.

  Something had happened to make him that way, and she wanted to wipe away the bad memories.

  The ship shifted beneath her. Normally, it was hard to feel their movement; El Cazador was a smooth ride. They must have turned abruptly.

  Were they under attack again? At least this time it wasn’t her fault.

  When nothing further happened, she headed for the bridge. Daisy was in the pilot’s seat; otherwise, the room was empty. She peered over her shoulder as Alex entered and grinned, white teeth gleaming against her jade-green lips.

  “Where is everyone and where are we going?” Alex asked.

  “Everyone is over in the conference room having a meeting, and we’re going to Trakis Five.”

  Shock punched her in the gut. “Trakis Five? Why would we go anywhere near Trakis Five?”

  …

  Jon stared at Alex’s mutinous expression as the shuttle door closed between them. She’d wanted to go too and had made it very clear.

  In some ways, he understood her desire to cram as much life as she could into every moment. All the same, he was pleased it was Rico who had refused to take her this time. Rico had quite rightly pointed out that this was not a sightseeing trip.

  They were taking Janey. She would hopefully get the information they needed, and they would be out of there before anyone even noticed their presence.

  Of course, Jon had serious doubts things would pan out that way. They were number one on the Collective’s most-wanted list and were about to touch down on Trakis Five, administrative center of the Collective and base for the Corps, the Collective’s private and extremely effective army. So it was perfect Alex was staying aboard El Cazador.

  Skylar was coming with them. She was dressed in the uniform of the Corps. It was her job to keep watch and monitor for any Collective activity, maybe manage to run a little interference if they were spotted.

  They would take Janey to wherever this computer node was located. Right now, she didn’t actually know, just coordinates of a location, but with the way their luck was going, it would be slap bang in the middle of Corps headquarters. But at least Alex would be safe—or as safe as any of them were at this point.

  Slumping down in his seat, he stared at the ceiling. He and Alex had been avoiding each other for the last three days. He’d decided it was best, and she obviously agreed. Until this Collective problem was sorted, there was no point in making plans. As if he had any intention of ever making plans again.

  Darkness was falling as Rico glided the shuttle into the main port area of the city, making no effort at subterfuge. They’d decided their best bet for getting through this was not to draw attention and hope no one noticed them.

  They hired two speeders. A large four-seater that held him, Rico, and Janey, while Skylar followed at a distance in the second, smaller vehicle.

  Janey sat in the front beside Rico, with a handheld tracking device locked onto the computer node. They headed first into the city, but once in the built-up area she directed them away from the center and into the residential district. The buildings became gradually more luxurious, reminding him of pictures he had seen of old Earth cities.

  There was an air of civilized sophistication to Maltrex, the main city on Trakis Five. The walkways beneath them were wide, the air clean. He’d have preferred a few more speeders to blend in with, but as they moved on the traffic thinned even more.

  “That building there,” Janey said, pointing the device toward the biggest house yet. The building seemed familiar, but Jon was certain he’d never been here before.

  On the same principle they had used so far, they went straight to the front gate. Rico pressed his palm to the pad. Nothing happened.

  “Looks like no one’s home.” He turned to Janey. “Can you get us in?”

  “No problem, but it will take a couple of minutes.”

  “Guys?” Jon went instantly still as Skylar’s voice sounded in the comm unit in his ear.

  “What is it?” Rico asked.

  “Do you know whose house you’re standing in front of?”

  “No, but I presume you’re going to tell us.”

  “Aiden Ross.”

  “Well, that explains why no one’s home.”

  It also explained why Jon recognized the place. The pictures had been in the files he’d been sent on Ross. He’d never considered a home hit; there was usually too much security, so he’d not bothered to case the place.

  “Have you spotted any surveillance?” Rico asked.

  “None, and I can’t see why they’d bother, as Aiden’s dead, but I’d still get in and out of there as fast as you can.”

  “We’re in,” Janey said.

  The huge metal gates slid open. Rico and Janey climbed back in the speeder, and they headed for the main entrance to the house.

  Jon tried to make sense of the information. Had someone within Ross’s own household set up the assassination? He had no family living with him, so it must be a member of the staff. Or had someone infiltrated the house to make the transfer so it would appear as though it came from here? But that didn’t make sense. Janey was one of only a very few people who could have traced the transfer back to its origin. Why go to the bother of setting something like that up if the chances were you’d never be found out?

  Once inside the house, Jon halted in the wide hallway and stared around him. “Jesus, the guy was a nutter. Look at this stuff.”

  Pictures covered the walls, all of them depicting religious themes. Most appeared to be scenes of divine retribution—a whole load of fire and brimstone.

  “Maybe you could take one back for Alex,” Rico said. “You know, make her feel at home—get back in her good books.”

  Jon cast him a quick glance. “Piss off.”

  “Well, we’ve all noticed the pair of you aren’t talking, and if you aren’t talking I doubt you’re doing anything else.”

  Janey giggled.

  Christ, they’d obviously been discussing him and Alex. Strangely, the thought didn’t bother him, which didn’t mean he had any intention of talking about it.

  “Which way now?” he asked Janey. “I hope you can get close—this place would take hours to search.”

  “That way.” She pointed to a set of double doors.

  The doors led into a large, high-tech office—the decor silver and white, the only color in the room a huge crucifixion scene hanging behind the polished silver desk. Janey sat at the console and flipped a switch.

  “It’s protected,” she said. “It’ll take me a couple of minutes to get in.” She hunched over the console, her brows drawn together. “Do you think you could give me a bit of room here? You’re both breathing down my neck.”

  Jon took a step back but stayed where he could see the screen. Rico leaned against the desk and stared into space while his foot tapped on the floor.

  Janey glared at it, and he pushed himself up and paced the room. She turned back to the console and her fingers flew over the keys. Jon had come to respect her over the past few days. They’d spent a lot of time together as they struggled to make sense of the information on Deke’s files. And strangely, once he’d stopped trying to flirt with her, she’d revealed herself as a much nicer person, and he’d come to like her as well—something he hadn’t expected.

  A message flashed up on the screen, and she frowned. “Not right,” she muttered under her breath and d
eleted the entry before Jon could read it.

  She tapped again, deleted again, tapped again, and sat back. “That’s it,” she said. “I thought it was wrong, but it’s not. It’s coming up with the same answer every time.”

  “And that is?” Jon said, not bothering to keep the impatience from his voice.

  “Aiden Ross.”

  “What do you mean, Aiden Ross? Aiden Ross what?”

  “Aiden Ross made the transfer.”

  Jon pinched the bridge of his nose. “You’re telling me Aiden Ross paid for his own assassination?”

  “Yup. Ross not only paid, but he actually set up the transaction.”

  “You’re sure?

  She nodded, and Jon spun around and stalked the length of the room.

  He’d been counting on this to give them a lead they could use to convince the Collective to back off and get the bounty off their heads. But like everything else since he’d woken up from cryo, this made no sense.

  “So Aiden Ross effectively committed suicide,” Rico said from behind him. “It would explain how he knew how to take down one of the Collective and make sure they stayed down.”

  Jon turned to face the vampire. “But why? The man was immortal—why would he kill himself?”

  Rico shrugged. “Some people can’t handle the whole long-life thing. You must have seen it among your wolves.”

  It was true—Jon had seen many wolves die and none of them from natural causes. There were ways to commit suicide without actually killing yourself. Just pick a fight with the wrong person.

  “He obviously went to great lengths to hide the fact that he committed suicide,” Rico said.

  “But somebody knows,” Jon said.

  Rico cast him a sharp look. “Why do you say that?”

  “Why else would they try to shut me up? If they thought it was a straight contract killing, why not let me serve my sentence and die in the mines?”

  “Then whoever knows must also suspect that you know who paid you to do the job?”

  “Or they’re getting rid of me because I know how to kill them. Jesus, this is doing my head in. Why would Ross fake his own assassination? And why the hell would anyone care?” He crossed the room to where Janey still sat in front of the console. “You got the proof you need?”

  “Of course.” Janey sounded offended by the question. “I’ve transferred the data to El Cazador.”

  “Good. Let’s get out of here. We can think it through once we’re back on the ship.”

  Jon headed for the door, but Skylar’s voice in his comm unit stopped him in his tracks.

  “You have company.”

  “Who is it?” Rico asked.

  “The good part is, it’s not Corps. Looks like some sort of local security force. Probably triggered by you going in there.”

  “And the bad part?”

  “There’s a whole load of them—twenty at least.”

  “Okay, thanks, sweetheart.”

  “You want me in there?”

  “Hell, I want you anywhere I can get you, but stay outside for now. Be ready to cause a distraction once we’re out of here. I don’t want anyone following us back to the Cazador.”

  “Will do. They’re heading down the drive now.”

  Rico turned to Jon. “Keep a watch on the entrance. Yell as soon as anyone gets into the building.” He strode across to the desk where Janey still sat at the console. “Can you pull up the plans for the house—find us another way out.”

  She nodded, and Jon moved away to stand just inside the doorway. From there, the main access to the house was visible. Huge windows lined the front wall, giving a clear view of the approaching men. They wore dark blue uniforms, not the black of the Corps, which was good news.

  But even so, these men were alert. Their weapons weren’t drawn, but their hands rested on their laser pistols.

  “You have about one minute,” he said.

  Janey’s hands flew over the keyboard. They didn’t falter as she answered. “I need another thirty seconds. I’m just getting the codes for the rear entrance.”

  Jon considered closing the doors; it would give them maybe a few more minutes before they were discovered, but it would also block their only exit from the office.

  Rico came to stand on the other side of the doorway and they both drew their pistols. Rico’s eyes filled with that familiar dark excitement that Jon knew was reflected in his own.

  The front door opened, and the men stood framed in the doorway. They cautiously stepped into the wide hallway, their weapons drawn now.

  “Done,” Janey said behind them.

  Jon turned to tell her to stay down, but too late. She stood up. One of the men in the hallway must have caught the movement; he raised his pistol and aimed it at the doorway.

  “Go,” Rico said.

  Moving as one, Rico and Jon stepped into the open doorway, their lasers already blazing as they moved into position. Two of the men went down, a third got off one shot. Jon countered with a shot from his own laser, and Rico blasted him in the head. The others were falling back but shooting as they went.

  Behind them, Janey screamed and crashed to the floor.

  Chapter Sixteen

  The men retreated and took cover outside the main entrance. Jon knew they wouldn’t stay there for long, though. They only had minutes at most. He turned to glance at Janey. She lay still on the floor, but as he watched, she shifted and rolled on to her knees.

  “Stay down,” he said.

  Janey gritted her teeth. “It’s not as though I have a lot of choice.”

  “How bad are you hit?”

  “Not bad. Just a glance.” She hissed with pain. “But it got me in the lower leg. I can walk, but I’ll slow you down.”

  They’d be back soon. They must be aware there were only three of them.

  It was obvious what he had to do. And maybe it was better this way. At least he’d go out doing some good. He took a step toward Rico, who turned to face him, one eyebrow raised.

  Jon nodded toward Janey. “Take her and get out of here. I’ll keep you covered.”

  Rico hesitated.

  “There are too many of them,” Jon said. “We try and fight our way out, and she’s going to end up dead.”

  Rico glanced from him to Janey and back to Jon. “Let’s find out what’s happening out there. Skylar?”

  “Yes?”

  “What’s going on?”

  “There are more approaching. I suggest you get out of there before you’re surrounded.”

  “Okay. We’re coming out the back way.” He gave a backward glance to the door and crossed over to where Janey half sat, half lay on the floor. “How you doing?”

  “I’m fine. Are we getting out of here?”

  “Yeah, we’re getting out.” He scooped her up with ease, headed to the door, but paused beside Jon. “Don’t be a goddamn hero. Give us enough time to clear the building, and then get out of here.”

  Janey’s face was rigid with pain—her mouth a grim line, her eyes closed. Now they fluttered open, and she stared at Jon. “What’s happening? We can’t leave you here. Alex will kill us.”

  The idea that Alex might be even slightly upset if he didn’t return cheered him a little. Suddenly he wanted to say something. Some message for Alex. But what was the point? Instead, he forced a grin. “I’ll be fine—you know I live for this shit. Anyway, I’ll be right behind you.”

  Rico nodded once and turned as Jon stepped into the doorway. Legs braced, Jon fired a continuous stream in the direction of the main entrance. When he peered over his shoulder, Rico hadn’t moved. “Go,” Jon snapped.

  As he watched them disappear, his chest tightened. What had he expected? That Rico would stay and they’d all go down in a blaze of glory? Buddies together? Who the fuck was he kidding? He wasn’t anybody’s buddy.

  He backed into the office as men surged through the door, lasers blazing, cutting off his maudlin thoughts. For a brief second, he considered not respond
ing, letting them kill him and getting it over with fast, but almost at the same time he acknowledged the impossibility of that—it wasn’t in his nature to go down without a fight.

  He countered their shots almost automatically, until a blast caught him in the arm. The acrid smell of burning cloth seared his nostrils, followed by the sweet smell of roasting flesh. The pain hardly registered, but he realized that their lasers weren’t set to kill. They must want to take him alive, which meant there was a chance he could get out of this.

  For years, he’d thought himself ready to die, and he’d faced death many times. Now, at the thought of survival, exhilaration raced through him, sending adrenaline surging through his veins. He fought on, countering each blast, getting in a few of his own. Bodies littered the hallway, but there were still plenty more left.

  Rico and Janey must be clear by now, but it made no difference. If he moved from the relative safety of the office, they’d be able to attack him from all sides instead of just one. His only hope was that they’d eventually back off again, giving him a chance to run for it.

  As a plan, it was downright pathetic, but it was the only one he had. At least there was still hope.

  A small black canister rolled toward him, green mist oozing from one end.

  Shit.

  He held his breath as long as he could, but finally his lungs heaved for air, drawing in the sickly green mist. His belly turned to liquid, nausea rose up in his throat, and a wave of weakness washed over him. The laser pistol dropped from his useless fingers and his legs gave way beneath him. He crashed to the floor.

  Alex’s gamine face flashed across his mind, and the last thought as darkness took him was he didn’t want to die.

  …

  He knew it was only a matter of time and pain, however much of each he had left before death took him.

  If he could have shifted, he might have had a chance, but they had tied him tight to the seat so he could barely move, let alone shift. There were five men in the room with him. They weren’t talking yet, but one thing was clear—they didn’t like him. Which was hardly surprising—he’d killed at least eight of their friends.