by Cathy Pegau
“Who else would know for sure?” Not Natalia. She hadn’t spent enough time at Exeter to have a lunch break, let alone become knowledgeable about Zia’s computer.
“Just James,” Tonio replied, sounding very tired.
That was likely a dead end. No pun intended.
I sat on the other end of the couch, drawing my legs under me. “How can I find files if I don’t know what else to look for?”
And how could I face Zia again? She’d said we’d talk, and more than hinted that she was interested in me, but not for a quick fling. If I rebuffed her to save myself, would I lose the chance at the files? Probably. The stakes just went a little higher, and I was starting to lose control of the game.
I let my head fall back against the couch. “This stinks.”
Tonio snorted a mirthless laugh. “That’s an understatement.” He opened his eyes and turned toward me. “What was with you before?”
Shit. Now he decides to be Mr. Communication?
I slanted a look at him without turning my head. “Before?”
He gestured toward the door. “When you came in. You were panting like you ran the fifteen flights of stairs, and acted like you wanted…you know.”
We both knew what I’d wanted, if not exactly who I’d wanted.
He shifted and rested his arm on the back of the couch. “You caught me by surprise.”
It was my turn to snort a laugh. “I bet. But don’t think I haven’t forgotten our agreement.”
“Then what made you so anxious?” He reached out, as if to stroke my hair. “You looked beautiful, by the way.”
I jerked upright and scooted back against the corner of the couch before he touched me. “Too much wine, Tonio, but I’m sober now. Knock it off.”
“No, Liv,” he said shaking his head. “I’ve seen you when you’ve had too much to drink, and I’ve seen you when you’re turned on. That had nothing to do with alcohol.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m going to bed.” I rose, wrapped my arms around myself and took the long way to my bedroom, behind the couch rather than passing in front of him.
“Liv.”
Despite wanting to nip this conversation, I stopped and turned.
He stood, hands on his hips and suspicion in his eyes. “Was it Talbot?”
I felt my cheeks heat like a keracite furnace. Guilt, embarrassment and trepidation twisted in my gut. It was a combination I didn’t recall ever feeling before and hoped I’d never feel again.
Frown lines deepened on his forehead as suspicion turned to worry. Or was it jealousy? “Liv, you can’t—”
“I know what I can and can’t do,” I snapped. Allowing Zia to affect me was a mistake I shouldn’t have made. It was unprofessional to risk the job like that. “I can handle it.”
“Can you?” He sounded as angry as I was, but was he concerned about me or the job? “Can you handle getting as close to her as it might take?”
He knew me better than anyone in the ‘Verse. He’d know if I lied to him. But I did anyway. “Yes.”
The look on his face said he believed me about as much as I believed myself.
Frustrated and confused, I turned my back on him and continued to my room. “I have to work tomorrow. Good night.”
The next morning, hands shoved deep into my coat pockets, I emerged from the PubTrans station several long city blocks from the Exeter building. Fat flakes of snow drifted down in lazy spirals from low, slate-colored clouds. They melted as soon as they landed on the well-trodden walkway, leaving everything wet and chilled. The dismal day reflected my mood perfectly.
I could have taken a taxi, but I wanted a little time to clear my head before facing Zia. There would be no avoiding “the talk” she wanted to have, so I needed to prepare myself. Maybe she’d come to her senses in the light of day and decide a quickie on the desk was a good way to go. It would certainly make my life easier. But life wasn’t going to get easier any time soon.
Head down against the gusting wind, I rounded the corner, intent on making it to the main entrance of the Exeter building two blocks away as quickly as possible. A broad swath of a blue wool coat appeared in front of me; another worker bee on his way to some other megascraper, no doubt. I shifted to the right to avoid crashing into him, but he sidestepped in the same direction.
“Excuse me,” I said, and moved the other way. He did the same. What was wrong with people? Why couldn’t they walk on the right side and keep foot traffic flowing, especially on a day like today? In no mood for a dance while snow melted and ran down my neck, I brought my head up. “Listen, mister, I—”
My mouth dropped open and my limbs froze, fusing me to the middle of the walk. This was no ordinary commuter but one Nathan Sterling, Milchner’s stalwart sheriff.
He grinned, but the projected amusement didn’t reach his eyes. “Miss Braxton. Fancy meeting you here.”
A trace of snow had collected on his shoulders and wide-brimmed hat. He’d been standing outside for a time. Waiting.
A tight smile formed on my cold face, purely a felon’s reaction to an unexpected meeting with a lawman, not to convey any true feeling. “Sheriff. What a surprise.” No lie, that. “On vacation in the big city?”
“Not exactly.”
Damn the void. Suddenly, talking to Zia was very inviting.
“I’d love to stay and chat,” I said trying to edge around him, “but I have to get to work.”
Sterling stretched his arm out to stop me. The grin had disappeared. His blue eyes hardened, and not once did the false one drift or flicker. “We need to talk.”
The easygoing, friendly lawman from Milchner was gone, if he’d ever really been there to begin with.
“About the robbery? I told you everything I could.” I had to play the innocent for as long as possible. Maybe I’d even escape unscathed, though I doubted it. “Besides, you’re a little out of your jurisdiction, aren’t you, Sheriff?”
“Not really.” What the hell did that mean? He nodded toward a spot across the street. “Let’s get some coffee.”
People streamed past, eager to get out of the weather, ignoring us as our eyes held. The tension between us edged upward. Had he gotten the drift fixed, or had it been part of his camouflage? A lawman with a lazy eye might not be taken seriously, might be underestimated and assumed to be an easy dupe. It was a mistake I’d obviously made in Milchner and Pembroke, but I wouldn’t make it again.
Sterling slipped his other hand—the one not attached to the arm across my chest—into his coat pocket. Was he cold, or was there a weapon? His face revealed nothing.
Hopefully, neither did mine.
“I’m late.” I started to push his arm out of the way but it stiffened, and his hand clamped down on my shoulder.
“I’m sure you can come up with some…story your boss will believe.” There was a twinkle in his eye, unmistakable acknowledgement of how I’d lied during our previous two meetings.
Damn, damn and double damn.
“You better not get me fired,” I grumbled, turning toward the direction he’d indicated.
He stayed close as we dodged ground cars and crossed the street. The café he pointed out was busy, but we found a table in a back corner. The aroma of fresh-baked goods and coffee would have been enticing on any other morning.
With manners his mother would approve, he pulled out a chair for me then planted himself in a seat between mine and the door.
I couldn’t help giving him a wry smile as I sat. “Afraid I’ll run, Sheriff?”
“Yep.” He ordered two coffees and some pastries when the server came over then waited until she was gone before speaking again. “Will you tell me what I wanna know, or are you gonna make me ask? This would go a lot faster if you just told me, and you wouldn’t be late for work.”
I laughed, and he grinned, a natural expression from what I could determine. I rested my forearms on the table and leaned toward him. “I’ll take my chances with the boss.”
He shrugged. “Have it your way.”
I wish. My way wouldn’t resemble this particular situation in the least.
The server brought our order. We ate and drank in silence for several minutes, but I didn’t taste what I put in my mouth. What could he want? What could he know? I’d give him five minutes before making another effort to leave. It’s not like he could arrest me for anything. I hoped.
Sterling wiped crumbs from his mouth. “You’re not an easy woman to keep tabs on.”
I quirked an eyebrow at him. “Why are you keeping tabs on me?”
He smiled one of his not-really-amused smiles. “I’m asking the questions, Miss Braxton. Or should I call you Miss Baines?”
My hands grew clammy around my coffee cup, and my heart trip-hammered. Of course he’d learned my false name, though I couldn’t imagine how. He was a lawman, and a good one it seemed. I’d best remember that. “Liv or Olivia will do.”
I desperately wanted to take a sip of coffee, but I was afraid the smooth cup would slip out of my sweaty hands. Besides, an extra shot of caffeine would probably make my heart explode just now.
“Enjoying your new life here in Pandalus, Olivia?” Sterling leaned back in his chair and stretched his legs out. If I were going to run, I’d have to leap over them.
“Just trying to make a living,” I said evenly.
He stared at me for a moment then laughed. “At least you didn’t say ‘an honest living.’ I’d hate to think you were trying to put one over on me.”
“I’m not quite sure what you mean.” What else did he know?
He grew sober once again. “Oh, I think you do.”
He reached into his coat pocket and I stiffened. Was he going to shoot me in broad daylight in public? No. From his pocket, he withdrew a handheld, not a pulser.
I contained a sigh of relief that I wasn’t in imminent danger. “Gonna show me more pictures?”
“Just one.” He turned the unit on and placed it between us on the table, facing me. A few taps of the keys brought up the picture of Tonio he’d shown me in the break room at Alpha-Omega. The one with another dark head at his shoulder.
Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit.
Instinct kicked in, immediately initiating a lie despite knowing it was futile. “I told you, Sterling, I don’t—”
He tapped another key, and my voice faltered. The picture expanded to show whose dark head was beside Tonio. Yep. Mine.
I had no idea where or when the picture had been taken. It was a candid shot of us walking down a street. We looked happy, so it must have been early in our relationship.
“Don’t what, Olivia? Recognize your own ex-partner?” The quiet tone only emphasized his animosity. “You’d be amazed how many towns utilize public surveillance systems. And facial recog apps. Very helpful programs.”
My insides knotted like a sack of snakes. “So I lied about knowing him. Can’t blame a girl for wanting to protect an old friend.”
“Tonio Calderon is reputed to be working with the Greys these days. You and Calderon are here. I’m betting the Greys are here.” He drew his legs back under his chair and leaned toward me. “Putting two and two together, I come up with a number I doubt you’ll like. Something in the thirty to fifty years range.”
He knew Tonio and the Greys had robbed the bank in Milchner, that I was involved somehow. He knew, but couldn’t prove much of anything or he’d have arrested us by now. But that didn’t mean I was safe.
The coffee and pastry roiled in my stomach and threatened to reverse course.
“I got to Milchner a hair too late to catch up with the Greys.” A predatory smile curved his mouth. “But I have you.”
Realization hit me like a kick to the gut. “You knew they were going to steal something from those safe deposit boxes beforehand.” I wished I’d known, then I could have avoided this whole mess. “You’re no sheriff. Who the hell are you?”
“CMA,” he answered simply.
Colonial Mining Authority. Sterling wasn’t a lawman—he was a government man. This just got better and better.
“I interviewed you and the others in Milchner as a routine part of my investigation. I didn’t know who you were at that point.” Eyes on mine, he tapped the handheld. “Then a few interesting things turned up.”
I swallowed the acidic lump that had wedged itself in my throat. “That’s why you came to see me in Pembroke, showed me the pictures.”
“Yep.” The smile stayed on his face, a parody of the friendliness he was capable of turning on and off. “But it’s not who I am that you need to be concerned with, Olivia. It’s who I will be. Will I be your friend? Only you can answer that one.”
I opened my coat to cool off and took a slow, steady breath. “I make it a point not to befriend fake sheriffs, or anyone in authority for that matter.”
He chuckled. “Unless it benefits you.”
Self-control mostly regained, I cocked my head. “You could have arrested me if you had anything solid from Milchner. Since you haven’t, it tells me you don’t.”
“You’re right.” Well, that was comforting. “But I do have information about you I could pass on to the sheriff’s departments and constabularies of Kalisburg, Potter’s Lake and Turnagain. Those towns ring a bell?”
All three were medium-sized towns on Nevarro that Tonio and I had hit. They were mining towns, like most, but the CMA didn’t necessarily have the authority or desire to investigate local crimes. It did, it seemed, have access to damaging information.
I closed my eyes and did a quick calculation in my head. Three robberies at ten to fifteen years each, throw in a few years for accessory after the fact for the Milchner job. Thirty to fifty, just like he’d said.
Leaning back in my chair, I looked at him again. His expression was neutral, waiting for an answer. Either way, he’d win. “So what do I have to do for you to ‘lose’ that information?”
Sterling nodded approvingly. “I like you, Olivia. You’re a smart girl.”
“Not smart enough,” I muttered. “What do you want?”
“Not you.” Ouch. I was both insulted and relieved. “You have files. I want them so I can nail the Greys.” His features contorted into a fierce half snarl. “And Exeter.”
I swallowed back the surge of bile burning the back of my throat. Sterling knew about the K-73 filters. He knew they—Zia—were up to something, and I had a feeling it was more than a little corporate secret-keeping.
What the hell was going on at Exeter? And how much wasn’t Willem telling me?
Chapter Fourteen
“I can’t,” I managed to whisper through the dryness of my throat. “The Greys will kill me, and Tonio for bringing me in.”
Sterling’s eyes narrowed to slits. “You don’t want to get convicted on those charges, Olivia. Prison gangs are hell on a pretty little thing like you, and the keracite mines are worse.”
I squeezed my eyes closed and rubbed my temples with my fingertips. My worst nightmares would come true if Sterling turned me over to the constabularies of those towns we’d hit. I couldn’t let that happen.
“Give me the files,” he continued, “and I can help you.”
I opened my eyes. He’d put on his friendly lawman face, the one I’d seen in Milchner, but I knew it was an act now.
“I don’t have what you want,” I said. Friendly Lawman disappeared in a blink, replaced by Angry CMA Agent. I lowered my fisted hands to the table. “I don’t. I swear.” Did I sound truthful? I felt desperate; maybe that helped. “That’s why I’m going back to Exeter. I have to look for more. And how did you know I had them anyway?”
His brow creased as he considered my excuse, ignoring my question. “When can you get the rest?”
He sounded like Willem there, and I couldn’t help the shudder that ran through me.
“Soon,” I answered, “but I want something in return.” Pushy, but it never hurts to ask.
He snorted a laugh. “Isn’t avoiding detention good enough
?”
Leaning forward, I said, “If Willem or Chaz Grey learn about our little chat, let alone that I’m even considering screwing them, I’m as good as dead.”
My heart pounded. I wiped my clammy palms on the sides of my coat. He had to agree, or I was finished.
“Go on.”
At least he was willing to hear me out.
“If I give you the files, I want you to arrange for me to get off Nevarro. Name change, data wipe, whatever it takes so the Greys can’t ever find me.”
Sterling stared at me for several seconds. Finally, he nodded. “I can do that.”
I quietly released the breath I’d been holding. “For me and Tonio.”
Surprise flashed across his ruddy face, then a slow smile grew. “So, back with the ex, are you? How sweet.”
“No, but he’s my friend.”
He frowned. “Your friend? He left you high and dry three years ago and sucked you into a job with two of the most dangerous men in the system.” How did he get his information? “You need better friends, Olivia.”
“Like you?” I asked. He ignored the taunt. “Listen, are you going to help both of us or not?”
Sterling rolled his eyes, perhaps skeptical Tonio and I were merely friends, or wondering how I could be so gullible. But my friendship with Tonio wasn’t so difficult to understand. We’d loved each other, had made each other happy once upon a time. Despite the death of our marriage and the fact he was a thief, he was a good person. Not like Willem and Chaz. I still loved Tonio, but in a different way.
“Fine,” Sterling said with a sigh, “but there’s one more thing I need too.”
Shit. There was always one more thing.
“I’m already risking my neck. What else do you want?”
“Don’t play the victim here, Olivia.” He pointed a thick finger at me. “You’re one of the bad guys, remember? And bad guys don’t get the better end of the deal.”
Isn’t that the truth. Nor did they get fifty million credits when they double-crossed their partners. But not being in a correctional mine or dead had its merits too.
