AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Aye, Captain.”
On the way to his quarters, he paused just outside the mess hall. Lear and the two girls were out of his line of sight, but he could see Priya through the open hatch, dutifully perched in the exact same spot where he’d left her. When she glanced over and met his gaze, he silently jerked his chin for her to follow.
Stowing her pulsar gun, she pushed to her feet. “Keep an eye on them, Lear. I’ll be right back.”
“Where are you going?” Onnika asked. Aidan wondered if he sensed a hint of concern in her voice, or if it was merely an act. For a fraction of a second, Aidan was tempted to peek in just to see if she looked as alarmed as she sounded, but he remained out of sight. Zeek might have been right about them being more frightened than they initially let on.
After leading Priya to his quarters, where they could speak in private, he asked about their conversation and received a complete rundown. Priya had been a high-ranking security guard on Uli Rings, a huge tourist spaceport. Before that, she’d held an array of peacekeeping positions and had been trained in combat by some pretty top-notch organizations, hush-hush government stuff that she never talked about. She was very analytical—except when it came to her man, Vin—and Aidan trusted her instincts implicitly.
“So, what is your opinion?”
“It’s hard to say at this point,” she replied. “They could be telling the truth, or the man they claim is after them could be a fabrication. We know they’ve lied already and have stolen from you. To trust them now would be a mistake.”
That was all he needed to hear. “Then we will exile them on Nazzu as planned. We’ll be arriving soon. Let Vin know.”
After Priya left, Aidan stretched out on his bed and tried to fall asleep, but his stomach was in knots and his mind whirled. This day had been more stressful than anticipated, and the race had only begun. During the long flight, he hadn’t been able to reach that mindless place of focus, that place where nothing else existed but him and the ship. Instead, he’d been thinking of the woman who’d robbed him blind with the sweetest smile on her face.
Watching her through the security cameras had been a curious kind of delight, though he didn’t know why. Each time he’d shut off the screen, if didn’t take long for his curiosity to corrode his resolve. What was she doing now? Was she still pacing, those sinful hips swaying back and forth? Or had she returned to comfort her friend, those supple legs peeking out from the slit in her dress? She had a habit of crossing and uncrossing them. A nervous tic? Aidan had been riveted.
Even now, the allure of his room’s personal view screen was calling him.
He rolled over and threw his pillow over his head.
Before, he’d been curious about Onnika’s story. Now that he’d heard it from Priya, he wasn’t sure what to think. Was she really spinning more lies, or were the two of them seriously in danger? Why should it matter? It wasn’t his problem, and they weren’t his responsibility. The decision was made. And if they really had been in danger, Nazzu should still be safer for them than Armina had been. Some other captain might take them in. If not another contestant, then perhaps a race-hopper. Pretty girls were always welcome somewhere.
He turned over and punched the lumps out of his pillow, but it was no use. There’d be no sleep for him. Giving up, he tossed the pillow aside, crossed to his view screen, and navigated to the surveillance feed.
“What the…?” The mess hall was empty!
Stabbing the keyboard with his finger, he shuffled through the surveillance feeds, first checking the recreation room, then—unfortunately—the engine room.Ugh. I really didn’t need to see Priya and Vin going at it.He quickly changed feeds, checking the rest of the ship. Nothing there. Nope. Not there, either.
When he finally found them, he let out a ripe curse. “What the hell are they doing?”
