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“Hang on. Let me make sure these aren’t tied to a security system.” She pulled down one of the wires and studied the electrical components of the light. She’d only seen one security system like that, but it had always stuck with her as ingenious and something she’d do when she had her own place.
“Looks clean.” She tucked the wires back in and shrugged. “I’m actually surprised there isn’t more security in this place.”
“I’m pretty sure they figured they had an unbreachable facility, what with no doors or windows.”
“Right. But we have Dr. Aldani. Bonus points for us.” A few steps further and she made out the shape of a door panel. “I think this is it. Are you ready?”
“I wish we knew what was behind there.” A muscle jumped in Finn’s jaw, and his fingers tightened around the handle of his gun.
“Damn, so do I.” Renna tugged at her jacket and stretched her arms. “I can’t remember the last time I went in blind on a job.” She rolled her shoulders, then pulled her gun from its holster. “Guess it’s now or never.”
Finn gave her the ghost of a smile. “Let’s do it.”
Renna pressed her fingers lightly against the door, and it slid open without a sound. She stepped through…
…and froze as a dozen pairs of eyes turned to her at once.
NINETEEN
Renna turned to dart back into the corridor, but a man grabbed her arm and yanked her into the room before she could even struggle. “Let me go!” she demanded, but the Ileth just glared at her.
She froze. Dear gods, what was he? Instead of violet pupils like Viktis had, this man’s eyes shone with an odd metallic glow. More machine than biological.
Another one—human this time—tried to grab Finn, but he’d had enough of a warning to fire off a shot. The bullet hit the man’s thigh, penetrating the skin with a spurt of blood, but he kept coming like he didn’t even feel it. The air filled with an iron-rich sent, almost like blood, and Renna gasped as the bullet pushed back out of the entry wound and bounced on the floor. The hole in his skin knitted closed a second later, leaving only a smear of crimson behind on his pants.
Finn threw a punch, his fist connecting with the man’s jaw, but the hulking mercenary had Finn’s arms pinned behind his back in three moves. The captain jerked and thrashed against his captor, but the man stood steady, unmoving. Like a rock.
Or a machine.
Renna let her gaze rake the rest of the room. The mercenaries seemed to be a mix of human, Ileth, and Trezian, but each of them had something that seemed off. A robotic hand. Glowing cornea implants. Half a face full of metal.
One of the Trezians stood up and crossed two of his arms. “Well, well. Someone must have found some seriously high tech to get in here.” The scales on his skin glinted sliver in the light. One side of his face was completely gone, replaced by a metallic mask. His other two arms he shoved into the pockets of his uniform pants. “The boss isn’t going to be happy about this.”
“What do we do with them, sir? Kill them?” the merc holding Renna asked. She wrinkled her nose as he moved, the scent of sweat and dirty clothes rolling off him in a cloud of stink. And beneath that, he carried the strange undertone of metal that permeated the air here.
She struggled against him, trying to arc her body as far away from his chest as possible. The man’s fingers curled into the skin of her arms. She grunted at the pressure.
If he left a frakking bruise, she’d make sure he never touched a woman again.
“Hold still,” he ordered, jerking her bag from her shoulder and dropping it on the floor to get a better grip on her.
The leader started pacing. “We need information from them before we do anything. The boss will be the one to decide if they live. He may want to use them for other things.”
Renna’s brain spun. She didn’t recognize their uniforms, but these men were mercenaries. Her people. Maybe she could get the captain out of here at least.
She shifted into her role, like putting on an old jacket. Her lips lifted in a conspiratorial smile. “I know you guys aren’t Iron Elite; you’re too well-funded for that. But I’m not sure who you’re with. The Star Raiders? Phi? Who’s running this part of the traverse now?”
The leader narrowed his eyes. “You’ve never heard of us.”
“Try me. I have more connections than you can dream of.”
“Who are you?” he asked. “You look familiar.”
Renna shook her head. “Uh-uh. You first, love.”
The alien’s neck slits flared, and all four fists clenched in front of him. “Answer me, dammit. Or I’ll make you.”
The guy was wound tighter than she’d expected. What the hell had they stumbled into? Renna swallowed and kept her face expressionless. “How about you let this guy go,” she nodded toward Finn, “and I’ll tell you whatever you’d like to know? He’s not important, just one of my bodyguards. A smart woman never travels without one.”
“A smart woman wouldn’t need one in the first place.” The leader glanced between Finn and Renna, then motioned to one of his other men. “Why don’t you convince the lady to tell me what she knows?”
One of the human mercs stalked toward Finn, a satisfied smirk twisting his face. Without warning, he slammed his fist into the captain’s stomach.
Finn grunted, his body bowing, eyes closed, but a breath later, he straightened his spine and stared straight ahead. As impassive as a glacier.
Renna’s muscles screamed to stop these men, to fight back, but she forced herself to stay still. There was no way they’d win a physical fight against them.
“You gonna talk, beautiful?” the leader asked. The metal plate on his face caught the light of the helolamps and glowed silver. She looked him in the eye and simply smiled.
He gestured, and the man punched Finn again. Aside from the violent sound of air leaving his lungs, the captain remained silent. He squeezed his eyes shut and took a shuddering breath before straightening again.
Damn him. Why did he have to be so stoic? If he collapsed into a quivering mess, these guys were more likely to believe he was nothing but hired help.
“Again,” the leader ordered.
The thud of the man’s fist connecting with Finn’s jaw sounded through the room, echoing off the scattered card tables and chairs. Renna gritted her teeth as Finn spit out a mouthful of blood.
Obviously this wasn’t working. Time for Plan B.
