Break Out (A Blood Hunter Novel, book 1)

by Nina Croft

  Skylar was frantically tapping into her console. After a second, she flashed him a grin. “Got them. Or at least she thinks so.”

  “Thinks?”

  “We’ll soon find out.”

  She came to stand beside him, rested a hand on his shoulder, and showed him the screen. She fizzed with barely suppressed excitement, and he reached up and squeezed her hand. She started in surprise but then smiled.

  “Here goes nothing,” Rico said and switched on the comm unit. “This is Transporter 334, requesting permission to dock.”

  “Enter your access codes.”

  He tapped in the codes and held his breath.

  “You are cleared for docking. Switch off your engines, and we’ll bring you in.”

  He flipped off the comm, switched off the engine, and swiveled his chair to face Skylar and Tannis.

  “Wow, we did it,” Skylar said. “We’re actually in.”

  “Did you ever doubt it?” He grinned. “After all, we are the best.”

  Skylar still wore that sexy little dress, and the vast amounts of bare skin on show gleamed with sweat in the heat. Rico gave in to the urge and dragged her down into his lap. He breathed in the scent of hot, excited woman, and then he kissed her. Her mouth opened beneath his, and he pushed his tongue inside, losing himself in the taste of her.

  Behind them, Tannis coughed loudly.

  Rico pulled back. “Soon,” he murmured in Skylar’s ear.

  “Could you please leave off the somewhat nauseating celebrations until we’re out of here,” Tannis said. “We have less than an hour. If we’re not away by then, we’re stuck here for another fifteen days, which probably translates to forever. So let’s be quick.”

  Rico kissed Skylar one last time and released his hold. She scrambled to her feet, and brushed down the dress, but a small smile still lifted her full lips. They all turned to stare at the screen as the ship was pulled relentlessly toward Trakis One. Up close, the planet didn’t appear any more hospitable; nothing on the surface suggested any life forms could survive here.

  A hatch opened beneath the shuttle. Rico’s hands tightened on the arms of his chair as the tractor beam caught them and slowly sucked them inside. They landed, and the hatch closed above them.

  “Right,” Rico said, “let’s get the supplies unloaded, Jonny loaded, and we can be on our way home.”

  . . .

  Skylar sat on the bridge of the transport ship, drumming her fingers on the console in front of her. The end was so close now, but she hated the waiting. Rising to her feet, she paced the floor until she tripped over her shoes. She stared down at herself—she still wore the stupid dress and ridiculous high heels. Why hadn’t she brought a change of clothing? She considered a quick trip to her shuttle, but she didn’t want to leave the bridge in case something happened.

  Flinging herself back in the seat, she flipped between the external cameras, trying to locate Rico. Nothing moved in the docking bay. The area was huge, cavernous, and empty except for a small space cruiser that stood, partially hidden, in the far corner.

  Her gaze moved past it, then back again.

  There was supposed to be no way off Trakis One, apart from the transport ship Skylar now sat in. She clearly remembered Tannis saying no ships were stationed on the planet—another of the security measures.

  The ship was a cruiser, clearly modified for the radiation on Trakis One, but otherwise bore no name, no markings. A trickle of unease ran down her spine. Kicking off her shoes, she rose to her feet and searched the bridge. She spotted the laser pistols taken from the dead crew and strapped one over her silver dress. She started to walk away, and then turned and strapped on a second, so a pistol hung at either side.

  Outside the ship, the air felt cool against her sweat-damp skin, the floor icy beneath her bare feet. She made her way around the outside of the docking bay, coming up behind the unmarked cruiser. It was locked up tight, and Skylar was pretty sure no one was on board. She stood for a minute, eyeing the ship, deciding what to do next. Should she warn Rico? But warn him of what?

  She had to think this through. It made no sense. The ship must have been stationed here since the last lunar cycle. Fifteen days. Five days before she’d ever boarded El Cazador.

  It couldn’t be tied to their hijack of the transport ship.

  Of course, it might be totally unrelated. But she didn’t believe that. Which meant that someone who knew of her mission had sent the ship to Trakis One. Had the information been leaked? The colonel wouldn’t be happy.

  She turned on her internal comm unit. Nothing came through, only a buzz of static. It didn’t mean anything. They would have locked down the internal link if they’d known she was involved.

  A door opened opposite where she stood. Skylar took cover behind the cruiser as four men stepped through, the familiar black uniform of the Corps instantly recognizable.

  “Shit,” she whispered.

  She watched as they crossed the floor. One of them entered the transport ship through the open hatch. He came out a minute later, shaking his head, and they all disappeared behind the ship. Drawing her laser pistol, Skylar took a step forward.

  “Stand down, lieutenant.”

  She stopped in her tracks as the colonel’s words came through her internal comm link.

  “Sir?”

  “Stand down. You’ve achieved your mission.”

  She frowned. “No, sir. My mission was get the prisoner off Trakis One.”

  “No, lieutenant, your mission was to prove the security here is inadequate, and you’ve done that.”

  It took a minute for the words to make sense. When they did, disbelief flooded her. “You’re saying this is nothing more than a training exercise?”

  “That’s right. And it’s gone far enough. We’re not risking Aiden’s killer going free. Now, stand down.”

  Anger coiled in her gut when she thought of what she had been through to set this up. She was aware the colonel hated the officer in charge of security here, but she was finding it hard to believe this whole thing came down to nothing more than political infighting. Her boss trying to prove a point.

  And what about the crew of the transport ship? They’d been assholes, but they hadn’t deserved to die for a fucking training exercise. Was that really worth anyone dying for? “You should have told me.”

  “We told you as much as you needed to know.” The colonel spoke sharply. “Is there a problem, lieutenant?”

  She ground her teeth. “No, sir.”

  “Good.”

  “Sir?”

  “Yes?”

  “What happens to the crew I hired?”

  “If they surrender, they’ll be shipped to the Meridian mines with the prisoner. If not...”

  Skylar could almost hear his mental shrug. If not, then she had no doubt they would be eliminated. She slid the pistol back in her holster, forced her tight muscles to relax.

  “I understand, sir.”

  At the far side of the room, the door opened again, and Rico and Tannis came through.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “Piece of cake,” Rico said to Tannis.

  He kept his pace steady, but the spot between his shoulder blades itched with the need to get out of there. He hated prisons. He’d spent time in a few in his long life and had no wish to repeat the experience.

  Everything had gone according to plan. They had the cryotube containing Jonny and were only a few feet from the transport ship when a voice called out behind them.

  “Stop where you are.”

  From the pitch of the man’s voice, Rico could tell they were in trouble. He stopped and slowly pivoted, easing his hand onto his laser pistol.

  Tannis turned beside him and swore softly.

  Rico counted six guards, but at least their weapons were still holstered. They probably weren’t expecting a fight when the numbers were on their side. A tall man with sergeant’s stripes stepped to the front of the group.

  “Take your hand
s away from your weapons and place them behind your heads.”

  Like that was going to happen.

  Rico glanced sideways at Tannis and saw the almost imperceptible nod of her head. His muscles tightened in readiness.

  They drew their lasers in unison. Six blasts took the six guards down before they had a chance to unholster their weapons. Rico stood for a minute in the ensuing silence, laser aimed until he was sure no one was going to move again. Ever.

  Tannis released her breath and shoved her pistol into its holster. “Right,” she said. “Can we go now?”

  “Not so fast,” Rico murmured. “They know we’re here.” He crossed the room and opened the control panel, blasted the insides. “Just disabling the tractor beam.”

  “What about opening the hatch.”

  “It has proximity sensors, it should open.”

  “Should?” She shook her head. “Come on. We have five minutes to get off this piece-of-crap planet.”

  Rico started pushing the cryotube toward the transport ship. He’d only gone a few feet when Tannis stopped him with a hand on his arm. “What now?” he muttered.

  “Look, Rico.”

  Four men appeared from behind the ship. Rico’s breath caught in his throat as he recognized the uniforms.

  “Shit, Rico,” Tannis said from beside him. “They’re Collective.”

  “They’re not only Collective—they’re Corps.”

  “Look at their eyes.” Her tone was full of awe.

  All four sets of eyes glowed violet, inhuman, and a shiver of unease ran down his spine. Unlike the guards, their weapons were already drawn. He wondered, briefly, what had happened to Skylar, and a wave of regret washed over him. Damn, he’d wanted to get to know her. Too late now.

  “Well, it was nice knowing you,” he said to Tannis.

  “We going to fight?”

  “You want to end up in the mines?”

  She shook her head. “We fight.”

  “Are you ready?”

  “No.”

  Rico grinned. He took a deep breath and…

  “Rico, get down!”

  Skylar’s voice. But from behind them. Rico grabbed Tannis, hurled her to the floor, and covered her with his body. The heat of the laser shots passed close over them, and he kept his head down. After a few seconds, the shooting stopped, and he peered up.

  The four men were down. Skylar stood, still in that sexy silver dress, her feet bare, her legs braced, a laser pistol in each hand.

  She raised an eyebrow. “You going to lie there all day?”

  He’d never seen anything quite so beautiful in his whole life.

  “They’re down for now, but they’re not dead,” Skylar continued, when he didn’t move. “And we only have three minutes to get off this planet.”

  Rico got to his feet and pulled Tannis up. “Thanks,” she said. “Now let’s get the fuck out of here.”

  Once they were clear of the planet, Rico switched the navigation system to automatic. Skylar leaned against the wall next to the cryo-unit. She’d put her shoes back on, and the heels made her legs appear endless. Dios, she was sexy in that dress, and the weapon belts strapped to her waist just made her sexier. Her eyes caught his, and she looked away quickly.

  She was going to try to avoid paying her debt. He wasn’t about to let that happen. She might have saved his life back there on Trakis One, but a deal was a deal. Besides, it wasn’t as though she wouldn’t enjoy it.

  Tannis strolled across the deck. She stared in through the glass window of the cryo-unit. “That’s little Jonny?” she asked, and Rico could hear the disbelief in her voice.

  He peered in and grinned. The man was enormous. Rico turned to Skylar. “He doesn’t look much like you.”

  “He’s actually only a half-brother. Same father, different mother. I call him little because I was ten when he was born so he was...” She shrugged. “...little. It just became habit. How long until he wakes up?”

  Tannis examined the control panel. She pressed a few buttons. “There, it’s started, but a good few hours, I would think.”

  “Perhaps we could load him into my shuttle. Do you want me to transfer the balance of the fee now?”

  “Actually, “Rico said, “that can wait until we get back to the ship. And little Jonny stays here for the moment.”

  Skylar dragged her gaze from the cryo-unit to Rico. “I’d like him with me.”

  No way was he letting Skylar out of his sight. Certainly, he wasn’t going to let her take their new friend and disappear as he suspected she might. He wanted his reward. He wanted answers even more. He’d considered waiting until they were all safely back on board El Cazador, but he had a feeling that things could go badly wrong very quickly. This might be his only chance to get her alone, show her a little of what they could have together, convince her that she had options.

  “Darling,” he said, “I’ll be with you. We have some unfinished business, you and me.”

  Her eyes widened. “We do?”

  “Oh yeah. And having your brother present might just cramp my style.”

  “But....”

  He didn’t give her a chance to say anything further. He moved in close, took her arm, and hustled her toward the door. He turned to Tannis. “We’ll see you back at the ship. We’ll be a couple of hours. At least.”

  On board the shuttle, he slammed the hatch and sat down in the pilot’s seat. Within minutes, they had undocked and were heading into space. Away from El Cazador.

  Rico set the autopilot and swiveled his chair to look at Skylar.

  . . .

  Why not?

  The words echoed in her mind as she stared at Rico. He sat in the only chair, his long legs stretched out in front of him, arms clasped behind his head, his eyes half-closed as he waited for her to come to a decision.

  She knew he wouldn’t force her, and she wasn’t sure that made it any better. At least if he forced her, when the world came crashing around her ears, she could tell herself she’d had no choice. But that was the coward’s way, and she’d never been a coward.

  He was beautiful, with the lean, masculine grace of a predator, and she wanted him more than she had ever wanted anything in her life. And she’d had a long life.

  But it was more than mere lust. She’d been alone since Daniel had died. She could have taken lovers, but she’d chosen not to, and now the need to connect physically with another being rose inside her. Something about Rico called to her as no one else had done over the years. She wanted to hold him, to make love, but she also wanted to lie with him afterwards, feel him close to her.

  Why not? Just the once.

  There were lots of reasons why not. The main one being, she needed to get the prisoner and deliver him back to the Collective. If she did that, she might just avoid demotion, though she doubted it. The colonel had to be really pissed off at her right about now. They would probably toss her out of the Corps. At the least, she had put her career back a good many years.

  But right now, her brain couldn’t seem to concentrate on that. All she could think of was how good it had felt to give in to him. She remembered the taste of him and licked her lips. He’d been so big and hard and…. She shifted from one foot to the other.

  She knew that if he could tell all about her from the taste of her blood, then afterwards she’d have no option but to kill him. Her gaze shifted to the cabinet where she’d hidden the wooden stakes. She realized she’d prepared for this, that all along she had known she would give in. The thought made her stomach churn.

  “Come on, sweetheart,” Rico murmured. “You’re giving me a headache with all this thinking.” He rose to his feet, never taking his eyes from her. “Both you and I know this is going to happen.”

  He took a step toward her, and she held up a hand. He stopped.

  “Just one thing,” she said.

  His eyes narrowed. “As long as it’s a quick ‘one thing’.”

  “The whole bloodsucking thing is spooki
ng me out.” She bit her lip. “I’m not trying to back out, but will you make love to me first?”

  Rico considered her for a moment. Finally, he nodded once. The tension oozed out of her, and she pushed the last of her doubts to the back of her mind. At least she would have this.

  His hand went to his waist, and he flicked the fastener of his weapons belt. Then to his thigh. He flicked the second, and the belt clashed to the floor. He took another step towards her. She swallowed.

  “I love that dress, but take it off,” he ordered softly.

  A fire roared into life in the pit of her stomach. She unfastened her own weapons and dropped them to the floor at her feet. Hooking her fingers in the top of the silver tube dress, she peeled the clinging material down and stepped out of it, to stand before him in nothing but a silver thong and the silver platform shoes. She made to kick them off.

  He shook his head. “Leave them on.”

  His eyes burned over her skin, lingered on her breasts until her nipples tightened to hard little points that ached for his touch. Then lower, so a fire coiled in her belly, and moist heat welled up between her clenched thighs.

  She watched as Rico studied the cabin of the shuttle. There weren’t a lot of options; the shuttle was small. His gaze finally settled on the pilot’s chair. He slid his palm into hers, led her across, and pushed her down gently. Her legs gave way, and she collapsed back, staring up as he perused her, his head tilted to one side, dark eyes gleaming with hunger and need. And the realization that he needed her as much as she did him soothed away any doubts that still lingered.

  Reaching down, his fingers slid between her thighs. He lifted first one leg, then the other and placed them over the arms of the chair.

  She sprawled, quiescent, her body throbbing with arousal, her breath coming in short, sharp pants, waiting for his next move. He trailed his hand over her breast, across the flat plane of her belly, then hooked a finger in the silver thong and ripped it away.

  “Dios, but you’re pretty.”

  He sank to his knees between her thighs and breathed in deeply. His cool breath brushed the sensitive skin of her inner thigh, and every muscle she possessed clenched tight.